


Skylanders - After the End

by Sky_Universe



Series: Skylanders - After the End [1]
Category: Skylanders - Fandom
Genre: Adventure, Drama, F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Non-Canon Relationship, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Post-Canon, Shipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-06
Updated: 2019-02-11
Packaged: 2019-06-22 23:56:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 51,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15593661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sky_Universe/pseuds/Sky_Universe
Summary: The story takes place after the final Skylanders game “Skylanders Imaginators” and all the events are unofficial. There will be a few original characters and original designs for existing characters, which are also not canon. It’s not based on the lore of the Netflix show “Skylanders Academy” and there will only be slight similarities to it.





	1. End of the Beginning

_Seven years. It has been seven years since the destruction of the Core of Light. From Chaotic Elements, Ancient Arkeyans to Doom Raiders and the Darkness itself, the Skylanders have conquered them all with success. Kaos, who has proven himself to be the biggest threat in Skylands, has been captured and unable to escape ever since. They defeated villains and even redeemed some of them to join the Skylanders. Every hero has a different story, but in the end they all stand united, looking forward to a bright future. After all those decades of war and misery, the Skylands deserve peace and now that's finally possible, thanks to you._

The crowd cheered after the final words of Eon's speech. The deceased leader looked upon the courageous army through his ghostly appearance. He was proud seeing all of his former students grown up and fulfilling their duties as the protectors of Skylands. He then directed his sight to Kaos, who was shrunk and being held inside a jar, rolling his eyes and letting out an annoyed groan while the crowd remained on celebrating. The spirit chuckled and looked back at his loyal followers. Eon fonded the group of heroes many decades ago, with the birth of Spyro and reception of more gifted youngsters. He never expected a small assembly to turn into a heroic union, but he was happy and so were the Skylanders.  
This was the first gathering to include every single Skylander currently serving as protectors. It ranged from common species to the most unique and rare creatures. It was a colorful variation of heroes who all cherished astonishing achievements. Even the former villains were clapping and cheering joyfully, as they also helped by having a change of heart and decreasing the dangers Skylands offered. The ceremony honoring an entire year of peace dissolved and the Skylanders separated to return to their business. Most expressed their disbelief and fascination for a whole year without villainy, while some appeared slightly disappointed due to the fact that there hasn't been a great adventure recently.

"Can you guys believe we actually brought peace to Skylands?" Spyro exclaimed eagerly after swirling his way to his oldest friends Stealth Elf and Eruptor. "It feels like we became Skylanders yesterday!"

"It sure does." Stealth Elf responded to the overjoyed dragon. "I'm glad there's no more bald maniac to waste our time."

"I kinda miss our adventures." Eruptor said as a regard to the topic.

Spyro and Stealth Elf both gave him a confused stare. "Are you serious?" The ninja elf couldn't believe what she heard.

"I mean… restoring the Core of Light, fighting Arkeyans, racing against the Darkness, those were all great experiences!" The lava creature explained. "Even if some of them had the risk of dying." He looked straight forward with a blank expression.

"You're right man." Spyro looked up to the sky remembering their journeys. "But all good things come to an end, right?"

"Well the good things are just getting started for me." Stealth Elf proclaimed while walking up straight. "I enjoyed surprising all those foes with my invisibility powers, but now I'm going to enjoy the time of peace and relaxing."

The trio was walking along without speaking for a moment before Spyro excitedly jumped in front of the other two. "We can still go hunt sheep!"

"Oh please Spyro, that's a dragon thing." Stealth Elf wasn't too fond of the idea. "All I ever do is to shear their wool."

"All I ever do is burn it." Eruptor added.

"C'mon! Don't be such wet blankets! It'll be like in old times!" Spyro tried convincing his skeptical friends.

"Ugh, fine!" Stealth Elf finally surrendered. "But don't expect me to shear some sheep you burned again!" 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, some Trap Masters headed to Cloudcracker Prison to make sure none of the captive villains are causing any trouble.

Snap Shot was strolling next to the Magic sorcerer Enigma and the Tech robot Gearshift. "Pretty impressive speech Eon held back there." The reptile started a conversation.

"He successfully covered our past adventures and acknowledged our victories." Gearshift responded in her monotone robotic voice.

The group continued to walk in silence before Enigma finally commented. "The victories that include us chasing down villains just for them to be set free again."

They thought about that statement for a moment. "Ye' know Eon. Always seeing the best in everyone." Snap Shot seemed as unpleased with the situation as his teammate. "I'm just waiting for that to come back at him someday."

"Negativity will not help Eon nor prevent possible disasters." Gearshift was talking in a calculative demeanor as usual. "All it will do is affect your state of mind and lead to paranoia."

Enigma rolled his eyes underneath his hood which made it impossible to see it. "Please Gearshift, we don't need your calculations right now." The mage clenched his Traptanium staff in his hand. "There's no way those wicked creatures have been redeemed that easily after decades of tyranny!"

The discriminating Skylanders arrived at the prison and went over their regular routine of controlling the inmates. Knight Light arrived some time before the trio and already checked most of the prisoners without suspecting any problems.

"Don't bother guys, I already checked every cell! They're all safe and locked up." Knight Light gently landed next to the Trap Masters, who were about to enter the next chamber of cells.

"You soar through the facility so quickly that I'm certain you missed more than one." Enigma looked at the Light Skylander without any amusement.

The angel knight flaunted his crystal scimitar over his shoulder and slowly walked towards the other Skylanders. "My sight equals that of an eagle and even if I missed some the first time around, I checked more than once."

Enigma let out an annoyed groan while Knight Light put on a cocky grin after praising himself for his excellent work.

"There is no sign of villainous behavior or malfunctions which means the prison is safe and we have nothing to worry about." Gearshift tried assuring the others of their safety which didn't quite work due to her emotionless expressions.

Snap Shot attached his weapon onto his back and made his way to the exit. "Even if some foe does escape, that ain't nothing we weren't able to handle before!"

The others watched the crocodile leave with his mind at ease and decided to follow him, since he is their leader after all. 

* * *

 

Five random Skylanders have found themselves in a small group after the ceremony, discussing the recent topics and sharing their thoughts.

"Ugh! That was so lame!" Roller Brawl complained immediately after the group sat down to rest.

"Don't be so disrespectful RB!" Smolderdash looked at the vampire sternly. "Eon worked hard and I think the speech was wonderful!" The hot-blooded humanoid had a habit of always staying positive.

The leader of the Superchargers Spitfire casually leaned his arms onto the shoulders of Roller Brawl and Chill. "Yeah! About time someone acknowledged our heroism!" The fire spirit tends to be quite narcissistic and everyone knew that he mostly talks about himself rather than including everyone.

Chill suddenly looked at the the Supercharger's claw with shock. "Spitfire, watch out!" The Water warrior quickly pulled her icy shield away from the speed demon. "Your hand was melting my shield!"

Spitfire put his hands up defensively. "Sorry, it's not like you replace those every month anyway." The Skylander taunted the humanoid sarcastically.

The final member of the group was Nightfall, she remained silent throughout the entire conversation until Chill and Spitfire eventually cooled down. "What do we do now?"

The company turned silent and everyone looked at the dreadwalker like they saw a ghost.

"We can always race." Spitfire used his answer to most questions.

"And there are always minions left out there." Smolderdash tried staying optimistic towards the Dark Supercharger.

"Or we can actually focus on the reasons we're here in the first place!" Roller Brawl was referring to the Skylanders' pasts, which turned them into the heroes they are today.

Chill suddenly became completely silent and seemed to be somewhere else. "We could." The Skylander responded, still lost in thoughts.

Smolderdash also thought about her problematic past and didn't say a word. She observed the Academy and soon noticed the dragoness Cynder, sitting in front of a golden fence and gazing into the endless sky below them. The Undead Skylander never talked a lot, but she seemed awfully quiet this time.  
Cynder looked at the clouds passing by and blandly stared into the abyss which got darker the deeper she looked. The purple dragon suddenly noticed the sky underneath darken and squinched her eyes to sharpen her vision. Suddenly they opened up wide in panic as she could make out a pair of glowing, menacing eyes glaring at her. Cynder jumped backwards and started to breathe furiously. The group of five noticed her panic attack and quickly approached her.

"Cynder, what's wrong?" Roller Brawl asked her friend with worry.

Cynder was unable to respond, but continued to gasp for air and think about what she saw. Smolderdash was observing her earlier and figured that something beneath the island must have frightened her. She slowly walked towards the fence and risked a look into the depths of the horizon. However, all the Skylander could see was an ordinary blue sky specked with clouds. She returned her eyes to Cynder, who started to calm down. Smolderdash was confused as to what caused her to get into such a state.

"What happened? What did you see?" Chill questioned the appalled dragon who was surrounded by worried faces.

"I- It was… horrifying." Cynder stuttered while remaining to stare at the sky.

"What was horrifying?" Smolderdash was curious and took another look into the sky, but still no sign of anything alarming.

The Undead Skylander took a moment before answering again. "Eyes… I saw those eyes…" She seemed like she wanted to keep on talking but was unable to.

"Eyes?" Spitfire became interested as well and leaned over the fence to look for said eyes.

"We should take her inside. Give her something to calm down." Nightfall suggested before peeking over to the observing Fire Skylanders and wondering what happened.

"I think that's the best we can do right now." Roller Brawl kept her eyes on Cynder and helped her to get up with caution.

Smolderdash and Spitfire dragged themselves along after the others, until they stopped staring at the clouds. The worried group brought the dragoness inside and got her to lay down and drink something. She then specifically explained what she saw which worried the others to the point where they all started to look out the windows.

"Let's hope that was only a hallucination." Nightfall tried easing Cynder's mind, but all the dragon could think of was the pair of striking eyes which stared right into her soul.

* * *

 

The day has come to an end and the Skylanders all retreated to their private places. Golden Queen was the last one left at the Academy besides the assigned night guards. The former villainess casually made her way to the nearest portal and stepped onto it. She began glowing and was transported in a beam of light. The queen reappeared on a lonely island which was the nearest located portal to Cloudcracker Prison. The sorceress took a few steps before standing still and whistling a certain melody. Out of nowhere, the rest of the reformed villains appeared and gathered in front of the queen.

"Did anyone see you?" Golden Queen asked with great suspicion in her voice.

Everyone responded by shaking their heads which brought a sinister smile to the queen's face. "Perfect."

She turned around to face their former prison. She admired the sight for a few moments before turning back to the squad. "We have invested enough time in gaining those fools' trust." The Earth Sorceress began. "Now that they finally believe we're one of them, we can use that to our advantage and begin our grand plan!" Golden Queen pointed her staff at the building made out of Traptanium. "We will free the trapped villains and together finish what we have started eons ago…" The queen paused dramatically which created tension between the involved villains. "Taking over Skylands!" The greedy queen finally finished with her loyal follwers reacting through cheering and clapping.


	2. Long Forgotten Sorrow

The day after the anniversary began with another announcement. Upon the request of many unsatisfied Imaginators, the reformed villains have been assigned to experienced Skylanders in order to improve their abilities. While most think it’s an unnecessary waste of time, others consider it a good way of looking out for the villains and helping the community.  
Snap Shot was patiently sitting on a chair outside Eon’s office. He’s one of the Skylanders chosen to train a villain. The Trap Master wasn’t too fond of having to work with a former enemy, considering he is the leader of the Trap Masters and was more spiteful towards them than anyone else. However, he didn’t want to disobey Eon and as a Skylander it’s his duty to improve the environment. Finally, the big wooden doors opened and Ignitor stepped out of the room. The fire knight looked at the reptile before telling him to enter the office. Snap Shot did as he was told and entered, closed the doors and sat on another chair facing Eon’s spirit.

“You know why you’re here Snap Shot?” The ghost expected an answer.

“Of course Master Eon.” Snap Shot responded confidently. “I have been assigned to a villain to improve his skills for the sake of the Academy.”

Eon nodded. “That’s right.” The spirit waited a moment before proceeding to talk. “I know you aren’t on the best of terms with the villains, even now that they’ve redeemed themselves, but you are one of the most experienced and professional Skylanders of them all.”

“Thank you master. I’m honored to hear that.” Snap Shot felt flattered and was happy that Master Eon thought of him like that.

Eon continued to talk shortly after his praise. “Being an excellent archer, you have been assigned to a Sensei of the Bowslinger Class. Wolfgang.”

Snap Shot didn’t believe what he heard. The reptile instinctively clenched his teeth and fists upon hearing the name of his sworn enemy. He felt outraged remembering everything the Doom Raider had done and was never willing to befriend him.

“All due respect Eon, but I don’t think I’m able to work with a maniac such as Wolfgang.” Snap Shot expressed his thoughts but tried staying reasonable.

Eon sighed, he feared the Water Skylander would react that way and showed disappointment. “Snap Shot, I’m aware that you and Wolfgang don’t get along and I wouldn’t have paired you up if it wasn’t for a good reason.”

Snap Shot wanted to counter that with another argument, but stopped after seeing Eon’s disappointed yet also stern expression. The crocodile calmed down and tried holding back his anger. “Yes, Master Eon. Forgive me for being so disrespectful.”

Eon smiled gently at the Trap Master and hoped the situation wouldn’t escalate. “You can go now.”

Snap Shot stood up and left the office. He walked along the halls of the Academy only thinking about having to work with his most hated enemy. He was enraged but he knew it was his duty to assist the werewolf in order to become a better teacher. He accepted the other villains, but Wolfgang was the one he swore to never trust and get rid of by any means necessary. Now he has to do the opposite, ensure that he stays and even improves himself. Snap Shot almost ran into a tree before snapping out of his thoughts and going on with his day.

* * *

 

At the same time, Cynder was sitting underneath a tree, whose shadow prevented the sunlight from hitting her. All the dragon could think were the eyes she spotted yesterday. The dark presence and pure fear she felt while staring at them. She shuddered and scratched the dirt with her claws. The dragon was in front of the library, there wasn’t a lot going on at the moment. She peeked inside a window and saw some Skylanders reading books. It calmed her down until she could make out something else on the light blue glass. The dragon’s pupils shrunk and her eyes widened immediately, she saw the same glaring eyes in the window again. The Skylander was paralyzed with fear and only stared at them like the last time, until she blinked and shook her head. The eyes were still there but Cynder didn’t panic, she charged forward and opened her mouth, shooting a black lightning strike at the window. The glass shattered and everyone near it turned around in surprise. Cynder took deep breaths and looked at the shards with no expression. The other Skylanders looked at each other and started to speculate what happened. The dragoness looked around and felt overwhelmed, judged. She didn’t say a word and disappeared underneath the ground as a shadow before dashing away.  
The Undead Skylander left the Academy and exited her shadow form in front of the Undead Realm. The scared dragon entered the gloomy and vast area of the Undeads. Many think it’s a part of the underworld, but it would be far too dangerous having it that close to the Skylanders’ headquarters. The Undead Realm was a place the Skylanders of the respective Element use to retreat and take some time off. Cynder recognized some of her undead friends roaming around the different islands, but she was looking for a particular one. She flew to the ambits of the mysterious location and stopped in front of the last island. A purple blast of energy could be seen from far away, followed by skulls soaring through the foggy sky. Cynder dodged one which was about to hit her and dived down onto the island. The purple magic slowly vanished and revealed Hex, who was practicing some of her powerful spells. The dragon approached the witch while she was taking a break from her sorcery.

“Hex!” Cynder yelled making sure the Skylander doesn’t accidentally blast her.

The sorceress turned around and saw her fellow undead companion. “Cynder, what brings you here?”

“I was hoping you’d have a moment to talk.” Cynder behaved carefull. “There’s something unsettling happening.”

Hex responded by raising her eyebrows and seeming surprised. “Of course, there is nothing else to do anyway.” She always talked without any emotions, no one could ever tell how she felt.

“Great.” Cynder was reliefed.

The two Skylanders floated over the specks of land covered with bones and skulls until they reached the heart of the realm. It was a circular room built from dark bricks and deadly looking spikes. It was usually used as a gathering place for all the undeads, but also to execute different rituals, often too dangerous to perform outside of the Undead Realm.  
Hex floated towards the middle of the room, which had a statue like a shrine. Cynder followed the witch and began to feel nervous about the discussion.

“What troubles you Cynder?” Hex kept her eyes on the statue.

Cynder gulped and hesitated to speak until she eventually caught herself again. “Someone’s following me.”

Hex kept looking at the shrine, which was giving off a mystical blue fog. “How do you conclude that?” She asked serious.

“Yesterday… I saw those eyes.” Cynder was stuttering. “They just stared at me… I was petrified.”

Hex didn’t speak a word. She’s thinking about what Cynder is telling her and waits for her to finish.

“I think Malefor is back.” Cynder finally admitted with fear in her voice.

Hex clenched her fist before directing her hand at the shrine to activate it. “Let’s find out.” She was oppressing her anger about that revelation.

Cynder was confused at first but then stepped closer towards the glowing ornament. Meanwhile Hex waved her arms and created small bursts of magic. The sorceress then created a giant cloud of undead magic above the shrine. “Whatever it is that’s haunting you, we will get it to us and confront it.”

Cynder gasped in shock. “W- what!?” She felt uneasy confronting the creature that manipulated her all her life.

“If it really is Malefor, we have to get rid of him immediately, otherwise the consequences could be beyond our control.” Hex was direct and showed no sign of doubt. “I will cast a spell which allows us to summon spirits and demons. You will have to focus on what you saw, no matter how terrifying.”

Cynder felt overwhelmed by Hex’ demands, but she’s used to her uncompassionate behavior and knew that they should solve the problem as quickly as possible.  
The witch started to concentrate on powering up the ornament while Cynder closed her eyes and remembered the creature. She felt the same fear, the same panic she felt back then and wanted to stop, but she knew she couldn’t. The dragon focused on the dark presence she felt and the striking look she received. Hex started to struggle keeping the spell up, but the cloud started to shift its form. The eyes appeared in Cynder’s mind, she saw them surrounded by darkness and tried her best to see them more clearly. Suddenly the eyes dashed towards the Skylander, who immediately opened her eyes again and tripped backwards. The cloud started to disappear and Hex stopped the spell.

“I- I’m so sorry. It surprised me I didn’t want to interrupt I-“ Cynder started apologizing to Hex while trying to calm down once more.

Hex approached the panicking dragoness and looked at her with no sign of sympathy. She noticed how afraid Cynder was and how distressing this situation was for her. The witch finally put her hand gently on Cynder’s shoulder. “It’s okay.”

Cynder immediately calmed down and saw Hex in a way she never did before. “It is?”

“I see now how difficult this is for you. I’m not going to force you to do this again, I promise.” Hex’ voice sounded unusually soft and caring, which Cynder found surprising yet also calming.

“Thank you, Hex.” The purple Skylander responded before fully calming down again.

* * *

 

Tidepool was surfing on top of her whale companion while being chased by a dark cloud charged with lightning. The Sensei looked back at the threat and then back forward with a smirk. She commanded the marine animal to flaunt her into the air with its massive tail fin. Tidepool performed a graceful spin mid-air before charging her squid guns to shoot a giant blob of ink at the storm cloud. She managed to rid herself of the dangerous force, however she soon heard heavy pounding getting closer and closer. Instead of worrying, the confident Water Skylander spinned her guns and charged towards the nearing noise. She soon recognized a giant creature sprinting on all fours with glowing white eyes. Tidepool tossed one of her squids before kicking it into the beast’s direction. Tentacles started to appear out of the ground and slap the creature. It didn’t hesitate to unleash a mighty roar which sent the pesky animal flying. Tidepool’s expression became tense and she began shooting her enemy. The giant being dodged her shots before charging towards the humanoid, attempting to pounce her with both claws. The Sensei quickly jumped on top of the monster and used its head to launch her higher into the air. She performed a spin attack, which caused the ink to cover the spot underneath her. The beast tried shielding itself with its arms but nevertheless took a few shots. Tidepool landed back on the ground and immediately pointed her guns at the beast. To her surprise, the monstrous creature transformed into a familiar face, Wild Storm.

“Already done? That’s disappointing.” The Water Sensei chuckled while teasing her fellow companion.

“I’m just getting started.” Wild Storm responded in a deep tone, which was followed by a lightning strike from his sword.

Tidepool leaned backwards as the bolt passed her and did a smooth backflip to get back on her feet. The Air Sensei started another roar which created a thick trail of fog in its path. Tidepool swiftly tried escaping the fog but was caught by Wild Storm holding the blade of his sword to her neck.

“I win.” The Knight exclaimed proudly and withdrew his weapon.

Tidepool brushed some dirt off her armor and looked at him without seeming impressed. “This time you win. Next time I will show you what my guns are capable of.”

The two Senseis both laughed and proceeded to leave the training area they were in. The two have been good friends for a while now and regularly trained together. They’re friends, but Tidepool started to develop a desire for more than a friendship.

“So, do you have anything planned for the week?” The Water Skylander asked a short and casual question in hopes Wild Storm wouldn’t decline it.

“I don’t think so.” The Air Skylander thought for a second. “Did you want to do something?”

“Oh I just thought we could do a little journey outside of the Academy.” Tidepool felt like that sentence was too awkward and obvious. “To make sure there’s no trouble.” She finally added.

“Sure.” Wild Storm seemed pleased with the idea. “How about we meet by the air balloons in two days, at sunset?”

Tidepool nodded with a smile and the Skylanders parted their ways. The Quickshot couldn’t explain it to herself, but she undoubtedly felt attracted to the warrior, even if it was just one-sided.


	3. Off Track

„Come on Chill, we’re gonna be late!” Roller Brawl shouted while skating with a cup of soda and a bag of popcorn in each of her hands.

“I told you not to stop for the popcorn!” Chill tried to keep up by running behind the speedy vampire. “But you insisted to wait in the line for ten minutes!”

“Because you can’t watch the Multi-Terrain Race without popcorn and soda!” The roller jammer responded.

The two were heading to an enormous arena, featuring each of the three terrains in one track. Almost every Skylander and thousands of creatures were there to observe the exciting competition which only happens once every year. As usual, Pandergast was hosting the spectacle and soon greeted the audience.

“Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to the most amazing, most fascinating and most expensive race in all of Skylands! The annual Multi-Terrain Race!” The crowd was clapping and cheering while eagerly waiting for the race to begin.

Spitfire and High Volt were in a room inside of the arena. The Superchargers used it to prepare their vehicles and themselves for the big race. The participants change each year, the two Skylanders were among the first chosen racers when the tradition started and after many years it’s finally their turn again.

Spitfire stood next to High Volt, who didn’t move in the slightest and was ready to enter his vehicle and reach the finish line first. “You ready to watch me win again?” Spitfire smirked and reminded the goldling of his victory last time.

“It won’t be that easy this time.” High Volt kept staring at the gate in front of them, which was about to open up any second. “You won’t have Hot Streak to win this year for you.”

“I can win inside any vehicle.” The fire spirit didn’t allow the robot to discourage him. “I have waited too long for this day to fail! You need a bunch of luck to defeat me, Volty!”

“Don’t call me that.” High Volt hissed at the spirit without giving him a look.

The enormous gate finally opened, the light filled the dark place and blinded everyone inside. The Superchargers could see the entire stadium with the race track right in front of them.

Three separate tracks all portrayed the multiple Vehicle Classes. One track for Land, one for Sea and one for Sky. One vehicle for each class were already present and the drivers could be seen approaching them.

Pandergast saw the Superchargers and began announcing each of them. “On the first track for the Land terrain we have the captain of the guard, the Tech Skylander High Volt with his highly defensive Shield Striker!”

Applause could be heard from the crowd as the Supercharger stopped next to his vehicle with a stern expression.

“Next up we have the dashing fire spirit Spitfire, piloting his… borrowed vehicle the Sky Slicer!”

Spitfire already hopped into the jet before Pandergast finished his sentence and waved proudly. He could see two small Mabu fans dressed up in shirts and hats with his face on it nearby the tracks. The racer didn’t hesitate to point finger guns at them and wink, which caused them to swoon over him even more.

“And lastly we have the dark and dangerous dreadwalker Nightfall with her terrifying Sea Shadow!”

Nightfall entered her vehicle and closed the shuttle without even looking at the audience, leaving some of them disappointed and irritated.

Pandergast waited for everyone to turn their vehicles on before continuing. „Now that all participants are buckled up and ready to go, we can start the countdown!”

The crowd calmed down before the countdown was displayed on a giant screen inside of the stadium. Everyone was yelling the numbers from three to one before the three Superchargers started the race.

High Volt was following the floating track in front of him and carefully accelerated his vehicle. He soon noticed Spitfire flying oddly low above him, until the Sky Slicer suddenly dropped right in front of him and forced High Volt behind it.

“What are you doing Spitfire? Stay in the air!” High Volt exclaimed as he looked at the back of the jet angrily.

Spitfire smiled and looked back at the unamused Skylander. “Well, I can’t just let you get ahead of me like that! And I can’t do much about it in the air!”

High Volt sighed annoyed. The weapons of their vehicles have been disabled to allow a fair race, so he didn’t have a lot of possibilities to get ahead of Spitfire. The Tech Supercharger thought for a second before he got an idea. He increased the speed of the Shield Striker and rammed it into Sky Slicer’s turbines. Spitfire turned around in surprise and didn’t understand what he was trying to achieve.

“Do you want to get me to the finish line faster?” The spirit asked confused. “This sure is a strange way to do it.”

“Sorry Stormblade.” High Volt mumbled to himself before charging forward one more time and damaging a turbine.

That caused the jet to fall from track, which was meant for Land vehicles. The Skylander smiled in satisfaction underneath his armor and continued to follow the track at high speed. However, Spitfire soon hovered next to the shielded car, struggling to keep the Sky Slicer flying straight.

“Are you fucking insane!? We’re not supposed to attack each other, you broke the rules!” Spitfire was furious and didn’t even focus on the race.

“It’s against the rules to attack each other with our weapons!” High Volt possessed the superior knowledge about rules. “As well as constraining other racers in favor of your victory!”

Spitfire clenched his teeth and piloted his vehicle closer to High Volt. He used the dangerously sharp sides of the jet to damage a row of Shield Striker’s gear wheels, even tearing one off in the process.

High Volt looked at his broken wheels in disbelief and then back at his opponent. “You never learn, do you?”

Spitfire stared at the robot with a cold, dead serious look. “No, I don’t.”

High Volt proceeded to charge across the track while Spitfire was flying above him. The speed demon attempted to drop his vehicle directly onto the Tech Skylander, but he was able to dodge it by charging forward. He then steered his wheel sharply to the right, doing a 360 spin with the Shield Striker and hitting the peak of the Sky Slicer. That caused the jet to spiral out of control and stay behind for a few seconds, which gave High Volt the opportunity to win. As he was driving, Spitfire soon appeared next to him again and hit the Shield Striker from the side. The Fire Supercharger leaned in, attempting to push High Volt off the road, who prevented that by steering in the opposite direction. That went on for some more moments, before High Volt was able to push the Sky Slicer aside and carry on. Both vehicles were damaged and began to effuse smoke.  
They both decided to stop sabotaging each other and instead concentrated on crossing the finish line, which was already within reach. The bickering Skylanders leaned forward inside of their vehicles and squinted their eyes. They were equally fast and it was a head-to-head race. Finally, both of them dashed through the finishing gate and braked their vehicles. Spitfire immediately jumped out of the Sky Slicer and headed to High Volt, who just got out of his vehicle as well.

“I clearly won, you arrived after I already hit the brakes!” Spitfire expelled in an angered tone.

“You won? You have to be kidding me!” High Volt walked towards the spirit and got closer while towering over him. “Your jet is covered in the dust I swirled up after crossing the finish line!”

Spitfire gasped offended. “That’s not the dust! That’s from all the dirt of the track you were on!”

“Which you shouldn’t have been on!” High Volt countered immediately after Spitfire’s statement.

Both then turned around to see their finish on the screen, but instead saw Nightfall waving at the crowd, which cheered at her rather than Spitfire and High Volt.

Spitfire stopped for a second before being struck by realization. “Wait a minute did-“

“Nightfall win?” High Volt finished the Supercharger’s sentence and they looked at the dreadwalker, who seemed to be slightly happy for once.

Pandergast soon approached the rivals, who were still in shock. “Seems like your gloomy friend over there reached the finish line before you. I mean, it’s no surprise after the intense battle which occurred on the track!”

The Superchargers looked at one of the big screens which repeated the dangerous argument they were having during the race.

“But don’t worry!” Pandergast ensured them. “You’re both in second place!”

The screen then showed the final seconds of the race, where both vehicles crossed the finish line at the exact same moment, thus leaving a shared second place. Spitfire and High Volt looked back at Nightfall, who was receiving the trophy for winning the race.

Spitfire looked at the ground for a second and thought about what just happened. “Wow, we really screwed up, didn’t we?”

High Volt glanced over to the Fire Skylander, who was smiling nervously. “We really did.” The guard crossed his arms and looked at Nightfall again. “But hey, it’s only fair that she won if we’re so busy fighting each other.”

“You’re right.” Spitfire admitted. “What were we thinking back there?”

“I don’t know.” High Volt laughed at himself for being so immature. “What I do want to know is what Stormblade’s going to think when she sees her vehicle.”

Both Skylanders looked at the Sky Slicer, which was heavily damaged from the race, before Spitfire showed a panicked expression. “I should probably go now.” The fire spirit quickly dashed off. “See you at the next race, Volty!” He said before disappearing.

“I told you not to call me that!” High Volt yelled after Spitfire, but couldn’t keep himself from smiling underneath his armor.

Meanwhile the crowd was still cheering and applauding for the winner of the Multi-Terrain Race. Among them were Roller Brawl and Chill, who were just as excited as everyone else. The vampire even managed to spill her entire soda and popcorn onto the people in front of her during the race. Chill however, kept on holding her drink the entire time. She tried taking a sip from the straw but was unable to. When she opened the lid to see what was wrong, her entire drink was frozen.

“Woah, you got a little too excited it seems.” Roller Brawl said while looking at the frozen juice in awe.

“Seems like I did.” Chill responded blankly. The Water Skylander didn’t bother to think about it anymore and simply threw the frozen cup away after the crowd has left.

* * *

 

During the big race, the Academy was nearly empty. Golden Queen took that opportunity to sneak to Cloudcracker Prison. While the guards were away, the crystalized building was surrounded by a magical field, which could not be passed by anyone. Golden Queen stopped right in front of it and whistled a specific melody again, which summoned Dreamcatcher who was hiding in between some pillars.

“Do you have it?” Golden Queen asked the imprisoned Doom Raider.

Dreamcatcher used her powers to pull a small blue button out of her giant bow and hold it in the air. “As promised, your majesty.”

“Perfect.” Golden Queen then took a piece of Traptanium, which she chipped from one of Snap Shot’s arrows and hid in her sleeve. “This should do the trick.” The Goldling then carefully touched the barrier with the piece and created a small hole in it. Dreamcatcher guided the button through it and right into her leader’s hand before the hole closed again.

“How much longer do we have to wait?” Dreamcatcher asked the Earth Sorceress with a tone of impatience.

“Not much longer.” The queen responded. “Soon I will free all of our allies and together we will take over the Skylands piece by piece!”

Dreamcatcher smiled sinisterly. “I can’t wait!” The floating head then headed back to the prison and returned to her cell.

“I can’t either.” Golden Queen said to herself before heading back to the Academy.


	4. Empty

A day has passed since the annual Multi-Terrain Race. While Nightfall is dealing with other Skylanders congratulating her for being the winner, Sprocket was asked to fix the Sky Slicer and Shield Striker, which were damaged during the race. The Skylander didn’t hesitate and began to repair and replace the damaged parts right away. It didn’t take long until Smolderdash entered the factory used by the Tech Skylanders and Superchargers, and discovered Sprocket laying underneath the Shield Striker.

“Sprocket, there you are!” The fervid humanoid hovered through the large interior and examined the several machines.

Sprocket dropped her tools and moved forward to stand up and face the fellow Skylander. “Smolder, what brings you here?” She was happy to have some company but also curious as to why the Fire Skylander was in the factory.

Smolderdash was happy to see one of her closer friends after a while without contact. “I’m sorry to bother you, but there’s been an accident in the Water Realm.”

Sprocket gave her a surprised look. “What happened?”

“The different pipes and fountains started malfunctioning, and there was also something about black holes transporting the water… but I’m not entirely sure. Anyway, there’s puddles and streams of water across the Academy and other realms, including the Fire one.” Smolderdash sounded quite concerned about the situation. “The Water Skylanders are taking care of the black holes, but they need someone to fix the pipes and fountains, so I wanted to ask you.”

“I see…” Sprocket was thinking for a second before looking at the vehicles she was taking care of. “I would love to help, but I’m currently trying to fix those vehicles. I know I’m considered the best engineer around here, but you should probably ask someone a little… less busy.”

“Oh, of course, I’m sorry.” Smolderdash understood her friend and didn’t want to interfere with her work. “I’ll let you work on the vehicles then.”

“Thanks.” Sprocket responded with relief and got back to fixing the Shield Striker.

Smolderdash watched her friend do her work and struggled to leave her just yet. “Do you mind if I stay here for a while?”

“Of course not! You can stay as long as you want!” The goldling sounded happy. “I’m always glad to have some company during work!”

Smolderdash smiled and sat on top of some machine parts next to the vehicles. She once again let her eyes wander the fascinating sight of the factory. The Skylander experienced a stinging smell of gas and smoke. It didn’t bother her since Spitfire spreads that smell throughout the entire Fire Realm. The mechanical objects in the building were mostly silver and gold, reflecting the light coming through the windows on the ceiling. She then looked back to Sprocket and saw how motivated she was while doing her work, how much energy she put into it. Smolderdash couldn’t help but feel empty and thought about herself for a minute.

“Sprocket?” The Skylander asked to gain her college’s attention. “Do you ever feel… useless?”

Sprocket stopped her work and looked at her friend sarcastically. “You’re kidding, right?”

The hot blooded being chuckled upon that response. She knew that Sprocket is a very active and busy Skylander, even if there aren’t any villains to fight.

“I guess that’s a no then.” Smolderdash’s smile began to fade and turned into a rather sad frown. “I can’t really say the same for myself, though.”

Sprocket kept on doing her work, but her attention was completely directed at Smolderdash. “What makes you say that?”

“I’m not entirely sure.” The fiery warrior held her arms, as if she was hugging herself. “Since we stopped Kaos and all the other villains, I felt like I’m not needed anymore.”

“That’s nonsense Smolder!” Sprocket wanted to cheer the usually joyful Skylander up. “We might not have to fight villains anymore, but that doesn’t mean we’re useless.” She finally set her wrench aside and turned around to face the insecure Smolderdash. “A Skylander isn’t just a warrior that protects people and fights bad guys, we are much more than that!”

The Fire Skylander was interested in the things Sprocket was hinting at. “Like what?”

“Like fixing cars!” The Sky Slicer shot out a few sparks after Sprocket’s sentence, which caused the two to flinch. “More or less.”

The burning human tried to smile again. “But… I don’t know what else I could do.”

“Then find something!” Sprocket sounded demanding but in a motivating and friendly way. “There’s plenty of things to do in Skylands! You can try out racing, or visit new places, or read a book in the library!” The Skylander became overly enthusiastic and started to drift away. She put her hands on Smolderdash’s shoulders and looked at her. “My point is, you can do whatever you want to do. And even if you don’t do anything, you’re not useless.”

Smolderdash was finally able to put a slight but genuine smile on her face. She then threw her arms around the goldling to hug her. “Thank you, Sprocket.”

Sprocket returned the embrace happily. “You’re welcome.” While they were hugging, the Sky Slicer shot out another set of sparks and ruined the peaceful moment. “Okay, I should get back to these now.” The Tech Skylander grunted slightly annoyed, before getting back to the vehicles.

* * *

 

In the meantime, Tidepool was getting ready for her date with Wild Storm. The Quickshot was inside of her room, bolting from one spot to another. She was as nervous as she was excited and didn’t have much time left. The Skylander put some new make-up on and washed her hair so it would smell less like seaweed and salt.

“Should I already tell him?” Tidepool was talking to her squid guns, which behaved like they were her pets. “No, it’s too early. I should just try to get closer to him.”

One of the pale blue squids jumped on top of her dresser and moved its tentacles. Only Tidepool ever understood how they communicated. “Are you sure I should tell him?” The animal moved its body to indicate a nod and the second one raised its tentacles in agreement.

“Well, if you say so…” Tidepool looked at herself in the mirror. She thought about all the years she spent with Wild Storm and how much their friendship has developed. She didn’t want to ruin that, but she knew that silence would only drive them further apart. “You’re right!” The Water Skylander finally exclaimed with confidence. “Wild has been my best friend for years! Even if he doesn’t want more than a friendship, he should know that I do.”

Her loyal marine companions clapped with their tentacles in excitement and joy.

“Wish me luck Squids!” The Sensei finally opened her door and stepped into the open. Tidepool had a clear mind and knew what she would tell to the one she was in love with.

Soon after, when the sun set, Tidepool and Wild Storm met at an island which was offering rides with air balloons. They paid for one and observed the gorgeous view as the balloon rose into the air.

“What a beautiful sunset.” Tidepool commented while being completely mesmerized by the orange and red hued sky. The wind gently blew through her green hair and created a soothing atmosphere.

“That’s something you don’t see every day.” Wild Storm leaned his upper body on the ledge of the basket and enjoyed the sight.

Tidepool eventually glanced over to the Knight and felt strangely safe and calm. During the silence, the Quickshot thought about what she could say without sounding too intrusive.

Tidepool kept looking at the sky while asking. “Do you often go out like this?”

“Besides when going on missions, no.” The Air Skylander answered simple and remained to stare at the light pink clouds.

Tidepool started to feel awkward but remained calm. “I would like to do this more often.” The sky slowly faded into a purple color as the sun was disappearing in the endless horizon.

“Me too.” The Knight agreed.

Tidepool’s eyes widened and she looked at her partner. “Really?”

“Yeah, I’m always glad to spend time with you.” He looked at Tidepool and smiled, even though she couldn’t see it. The Water Sensei tried to keep herself from blushing and turned her head away. She was about to say something before Wild Storm cut her off. “But it would be for the best if we didn’t.”

Tidepool felt disappointment overcoming her and didn’t understand what the Skylander meant. “What? Don’t you want to-”

“I do. But… I can’t.” Wild Storm turned around without giving Tidepool another look.

Suddenly, the Quickshot Sensei became angry rather than disappointed.  “Wild Storm what’s your problem?”

“It isn’t you.” The Knight couldn’t find the right words to express himself. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

Tidepool suddenly felt sympathy over anger. She was aware of Wild Storm’s past with Kaos, but she never thought it would affect him like this. “Wild Storm, I…” The Skylander felt like there was a knot in her throat. She wasn’t able to finish her sentence, until she decided to finally tell the truth. “I lo-“

The Water Sensei was interrupted by the sound of a rope speeding through the air. Her eyes immediately turned to one of the corners of the basket, which was missing a rope. Before the Skylanders could react, another rope unlinked itself from the basket. As Tidepool and Wild Storm tried not to drop into the endless skies, the other two ropes barely held the balloon and basket together. The terrified Senseis were sinking at immense speed and there was no way to stop it. Tidepool quickly thought of a plan in the perilous moment and summoned one of her squid guns. She tossed it at the two disconnected corners of the basket, which the squid grabbed with its long arms. She instructed the animal to reach for the balloon and replace the ropes, in order to keep it together. The squid did as it was told and used all of its strength to pull the basket towards the balloon. After they passed the island they left earlier, Wild Storm swiftly jumped up, grabbed the opening of the balloon and unleashed a powerful roar. The impact of the attack caused the balloon to ascend and fly upwards again. They finally reached the air balloon island and had a rough landing.

Tidepool stumbled out of the demolished vessel and thanked her squid for its help. “That sure was a ride.”

Wild Storm was underneath the deflated balloon, too exhausted to get on his feet again. “Let’s not do that again.” He finally managed to toss the fabric aside and crawl towards Tidepool.

“Yeah, we shouldn’t.” The Water Skylander remembered why they went on that trip in the first place, and how Wild Storm behaved. The Quickshot became angry again, she didn’t even get to tell him how she feels. Nevertheless, she helped the Knight to get back up again. Tidepool left immediately after making sure everything’s alright and didn’t say a word to Wild Storm anymore.

* * *

 

As the day was coming to an end and the evening sky turned dark, a small group of Trap Masters were nearby the air balloon island, heading back to the Academy.

“I still can’t believe it.” The Water Skylander Snap Shot was frustrated. “Out of all the villains I have to work with my sworn enemy? Why do those things always happen to me?”

“You’re being dramatic Snap Shot.” Enigma tried to cheer the crocodile up. “If the leader of the infamous Doom Raiders could redeem herself, then so can Wolfgang.”

“That doesn’t mean he won’t hate me.” Snap Shot hissed with spite.

Knight Light laughed over the reptile’s worries. “It’s not like you two have to love each other.”

The other two Trap Masters looked at the angel without smiling in the slightest. “It was just a joke. Sheesh, you two should really work on your sense of humor.”

Both Snap Shot and Enigma ignored their college’s comments and remained silent. The sorcerer then noticed that they had passed the air balloons, and suddenly stopped walking.

Snap Shot wondered what’s the matter and stopped to turn around. “Are you alright Enigma?”

“Yeah.” The magician answered while keeping his sight on the balloons. “You two can go on without me, there’s something I have to do.”

The turquoise Skylander shrugged and proceeded to walk, followed by Knight Light.

Enigma waited for them to leave before looking around himself to make sure no one was near. As careful as he was, he overlooked Stealth Elf who was behind some trees nearby. The elf was heading to the Academy as well, but spotted the mysterious Skylander walking towards an air balloon. She turned invisible and moved closer to Enigma, while also making sure she has a place to hide in case he notices something. The Magic Trap master opened the basket tied to a balloon and entered it. He then mumbled a spell which Stealth Elf couldn’t understand. His Traptanium staff started to glow in a dim purple light before shooting out a white laser straight through the sky. Stealth Elf gasped, alarming Enigma to observe his surroundings once again. He eventually released the balloon and directed it to follow the laser, which behaved like a string leading him somewhere. After the sorcerer was out of sight, Stealth Elf cancelled her invisibility mode and looked at the night sky.

“Where is he going?” Stealth Elf was asking herself and had the desire to find out.


	5. Frenemies

The sun has risen in Skylands and everyone started their daily routine. Everyone but Snap Shot, who was waiting for Wolfgang to arrive on the island they’re supposed to train on.

“You can’t trust that wolf with anything.” The Trap Master muttered to himself, still skeptical about the whole situation.

Finally, he could see an orange figure heading towards him in the distance. It was Wolfgang who was casually playing his bone harp as he strolled over the grass covered ground. Snap Shot didn’t bother to hide his distaste for the werewolf and approached him to interrupt his musical timeout.  
The Skylander roughly disarmed the former Doom Raider and instead shoved a wooden bow into his hand. “We’re starting our training now, the target is located on the tree.” The reptile was referring to the grand cherry blossom tree behind him. He turned around and walked back to it without waiting for a response from Wolfgang.

All of a sudden, an arrow speeded through the air and barely missed Snap Shot’s head. The Skylander became furious and immediately summoned his Traptanium weapon, ready to fight Wolfgang.

“Woah, woah, wait!” The surprised wolf put his hands up in a defensive manner. “That was just a joke mate, I didn’t mean to shoot you!”

Snap Shot grinded his teeth and lowered his weapon. “Don’t ever do that again, we’re not here to joke around!” He proceeded to march closer to the tree.

“What’s the matter Snap? Aren’t you happy to see me?” Wolfgang was teasing his sworn enemy while catching up to him. “Isn’t it funny how out of all the Skylanders and all the villains the two of us get to work together?”

“That’s not what I consider funny.” Snap Shot responded bitterly, while trying to oppress his hatred towards Wolfgang.

“C’mon, lighten up! This is gonna be fun!” The werewolf finally reached the tree before Snap Shot and looked at the target attached to it.

Snap Shot didn’t understand why Wolfgang behaved so cheerful and friendly. Though he did prefer that over the usual toxic conversations they used to have, it felt strange not having to defend himself against his deadly strikes and terrible symphonies. “Now show me how you handle bow and arrow.” The Trap Master demanded while carefully looking at his animalistic trainee.

“No problem!” Wolfgang positioned himself in front of the tree. He held the bow in his left hand, while pulling back an arrow with his right one. A slight breeze passed the island and some petals floated through the air. The werewolf closed an eye and aimed at the target. Snap Shot watched as the arrow hit the bark of the tree instead of the target. “Whoops.” Wolfgang looked at the judging reptile with embarrassment.

Snap Shot sighed and grabbed his own bow and arrow to demonstrate Wolfgang how he should do it. “You need to remember to keep your stance wide in order to have more stability.” The Water Skylander put both of his feet further away from each other. “And always keep the bow straight. You won’t be able to hit your target if you’re not pointing directly at it.” Snap Shot held the bow in a perfect angle which aligned to his own body. “Make sure to always pull the arrow back all the way, it will fly more precisely and hit harder that way.” He pulled the arrow back like described before releasing it and hitting the center of the target.

Wolfgang was quite impressed but pretended like he couldn’t care less. “Yeah, yeah, I can do that.” The cocky wolf repeated Snap Shot’s process and shot an arrow. This time it hit the target but was still far from the middle.

“Well, at least you’re improving.” Snap Shot admitted as he saw Wolfgang try again. “There’s still some flaws in your stance…” The Skylander wasn’t sure how to tell him and instead got closer to Wolfgang. “Wait let me just-” The Trap Master was standing behind Wolfgang and positioned his apprentice by himself. “So, you hold the bow like that and now just pull the arrow back…” The crocodile was hesitant to touch his enemy but eventually got over himself and held his arms. Snap Shot never anticipated to be this close to the villain and felt like he was breaking his own morals. Wolfgang’s fur tickled the reptile’s scales and made him even more uncomfortable than before, but that didn’t stop him from pointing the arrow correctly. “And now… shoot!” Wolfgang let go of the arrow. It pierced through the one Snap Shot previously shot. The Skylander looked at it in awe and completely ignored Wolfgang.

Wolfgang looked at the successful shot happily and then at Snap Shot before putting on a grin. “Impressed?”

The crocodile shook his head and returned to his usual serious expression. “Beginner’s luck. One perfect shot does not make you a perfect archer.”

Instead of being offended, Wolfgang snickered silently. He knew that Snap Shot’s stuck-up behavior was an exaggeration to intimidate him. “So, what’s next?”

Snap Shot faced Wolfgang and was about to walk past him. “Next we-“ The reptile was interrupted by suddenly stumbling over his bow, which he forgot to pick up first. He couldn’t balance himself out again and fell right on top of Wolfgang, tearing the confused werewolf down with him.  
Snap Shot opened his eyes to see Wolfgang underneath him. He never saw the wolf this closely and stared into his eyes. They had a deep brown color and appeared surprisingly soft in those few seconds the two spent on the ground in silence.

“Well, that’s an interesting way to fall for someone.” Wolfgang grinned and looked at Snap Shot, whose entire face started to blush.

The Trap Master quickly got back on his feet and brushed himself off. “That was… uncalled for.” He tried to find the right words to say in that moment.

“As uncalled as your sudden fall.” Wolfgang giggled until Snap Shot hit him with his elbow.

The disparate team of two continued their practice for a while. Hours passed and they somehow got along without having a serious argument.

“Well, that was it for today!” Snap Shot declared. “You weren’t as bad as I thought Wolfgang.” For once his remark sounded honest rather than sarcastic.

“Thanks…” Wolfgang didn’t expect to hear that from his former enemy but was pleasantly surprised. Before leaving, the wolf took his bone harp and started to play a tune on it as he was getting off the island. “See ya later alligator!”

Snap Shot couldn’t help but smile before catching himself and realizing what was happening. He watched the soft pink blossom flowers on the tree gently flow with the wind. He expected the session to completely outrage him and increase the spite between the rivals. To his surprise, it made him feel proud, but also oddly relieved. “Are Wolfgang and I becoming… friends?” That thought struck the Water Skylander like an arrow and it would stay on his mind for a while.

* * *

 

Some islands away, Spyro, Eruptor and Stealth Elf were carefully watching over a sheep. They have been messing with the poor animals ever since they were kids, and they haven’t stopped ever since.

“Almost…” Spyro was hiding behind some bushes while the sheep was peacefully grazing. Abruptly, Spyro dashed out of his hideout and started to chase the sheep. “Eruptor now!”

Upon that signal, Eruptor appeared from behind a tree and shot a burning ball of lava at the creature. The wool caught fire and the sheep zoomed over the island in anguish. Spyro soared into the air and created heavy gusts of wind around the sheep, extinguishing the fire.

“Your turn Elf!” Spyro looked around to see Stealth Elf sitting on a lonely rock, gazing into the distance. Meanwhile the sheep escaped the tyrannical Skylanders by jumping from island to island. The purple dragon walked over to his silent friend.

“Hey, Elf what’s wrong?” Spyro sat down next to the assassin, who kept looking at the sky.

“I just can’t stop thinking about it.” Stealth Elf sounded worried. “Where would Enigma go in the middle of the night?”

Spyro let out a long sigh. “We already talked about this. We shouldn’t be bothered with the business of others. And you know Enigma, as secretive as he is, he’s a Skylander and he would never do anything bad.”

“I know.” The elf lowered her head and looked at the grass, which was lightly moving with the wind. “But this seems like more than just a late-night trip to a village.”

Spyro tried to relate to the elf and seriously think about her discovery. “Look, if you really want to know you can just ask him later. I’m sure it’s something harmless and you’re worried over nothing.” The dragon saw the clouds passing by and observed the lively Academy. There were countless of different Skylanders talking, walking and enjoying their day. “Just try to enjoy your time. We have spent enough time thinking about possible problems and evil plans.”

Stealth Elf took a deep breath and finally got off the rock. “You’re right, I shouldn’t waste my time with this!” She looked behind her to see Eruptor chasing down another sheep. “Now let’s help Eruptor with that sheep over there!” The Life Skylander turned invisible and caught the animal in a matter of seconds.

Spyro smiled and was glad that he could get the assassin to finally relax and get rid of her tension. He quickly jumped after her and helped the other two to shear the sheep.

* * *

 

Cynder was running. She didn’t know where or why but she was running as fast as she could. Everything around her was pitch black and she couldn’t see any path ahead. The dragoness was terrified and choking for air. She could barely breathe and felt her heart pounding inside her chest. Until she saw them, the eyes. The Skylander froze on the spot and held her breath. Her pupils shrunk and her entire body was shaking. They terrifying presence of the eyes struck her from head to tail. She was unable to move and had to watch the eyes slowly move closer and closer. The fact that she was all alone in the darkness without being able to flee made everything even worse. The pair of glowing disembodied eyes approached Cynder, becoming more intimidating with each passing moment. Sweat started to run down the Skylander’s forehead and she tried to scream, but nothing was coming out of her mouth. The eyes were now right in front of the frightened dragon. Cynder looked at them and could feel the dark energy, which followed them every time she saw them. She suddenly saw a white line appear underneath them, which formed into a sinister smile. The floating mouth then slowly opened and grew bigger than Cynder herself. The Undead Skylander wanted to spread her wings and fly, but she was unable to. Before another thought could go through her mind, the mouth speeded forward.

Cynder opened her eyes and screamed at the top of her lungs. A powerful lightning strike followed and blasted through the ceiling of Cynder’s room. She rose out of her bed immediately and swung her head around. She was in her room, it was all a dream. Nevertheless, Cynder knew that the horrifying creature didn’t only haunt her dreams. The dragoness didn’t hesitate to dash out of her room and ascend into the sky. She didn’t know where to go, but she was unable to stay still in one spot.

Spyro soon took notice of his fellow dragon friend, who just passed the island he was currently on. She was flying at immense speed and the Magic Skylander could feel that something wasn’t right.

“Something’s wrong.” He said to himself rather than Eruptor and Stealth Elf, who were on the other side of the island.

The purple dragon jumped from the island and used his wings to glide through the air and follow the troubled Cynder.


	6. The Black Dragon

Spyro was hunting Cynder through the endless skies of Skylands but couldn’t catch up to her. His speed made him feel the endless blows of the air pushing against his body, it tried to throw him from his path, but he had to stay focused.

“Cynder, wait!” He tried to fly as fast as the purple colored dragoness, but her immense fear and panic made her quicker than usual. Finally, Spyro’s expression changed from worried to determined and the dragon flapped his wings furiously. He used his horn charge ability to gain speed until he finally reached Cynder. The Skylander threw himself onto her, causing them both to fall and land on a small lonely island. Cynder immediately got back on her feet and sharply turned her head into different directions. Her eyes landed on the exhausted Spyro, who was trying to get up.

“S- Spyro! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to-” She stopped talking and remembered the eyes again. She couldn’t stand still, she had to leave.

“Wait!” Spyro grabbed the Undead Skylander’s leg and prevented her from flying off again.

“You don’t understand, I can’t stay! They’re coming for me!” Cynder looked behind herself and then in front of her again.

Spyro repeated Cynder’s movement but couldn’t see anyone following them. “Who’s coming for you?”

Cynder looked at Spyro with great terror in her eyes. The dragon didn’t say anything, instead she calmed down again and lowered herself to the ground. “I- I don’t know…” The dragoness suddenly bursted out in tears and sobbed in front of Spyro.

The Magic Skylander didn’t understand what was happening, but he did understand that Cynder was scared and needed help. “Hey, hey, it’s okay.” Spyro embraced Cynder who couldn’t stop crying and gasping for air. This exact moment almost felt like a déjà vu because it already happened once, a long time ago.

* * *

 

_It was many years ago. Spyro just became a full-fledged Skylander and Eon already assigned him to his first major mission; defeating the Black Dragon. Not much was known about the mysterious creature, all it ever did was spread its wicked powers throughout Skylands like a plague. Many speculated that the source of its powers came straight from the Undead King himself, Malefor. However, after Malefor vanished and the Black Dragon remained to spread terror, Eon knew that he had to stop it. Spyro soon found the mischievous being, which tried to kill him immediately. The dragons had an intense battle and Spyro was at the verge of his powers, until he blasted his opponent with a powerful attack he didn’t even knew he possessed. It cleansed all the darkness from the Black Dragon, who turned out to be a dragoness named Cynder. The dragon covered in purple scales was hurt and deeply remorseful towards Spyro._

Spyro was holding the recently revealed Cynder, who couldn’t stop to sob and apologize. “What happened to you?”

Cynder tried to restrain herself from crying and explained herself. “I have been like this ever since I was born. I was kidnapped and raised to be a weapon. I was supposed to destroy Skylands.”

Spyro finally saw the opportunity to find out the truth. “Was it Malefor?”

Cynder flinched upon hearing that name and was hesitant to answer. “Yes.” Spyro could hear fear in the dragon’s voice. Fear that could only be heard if someone has been scarred for life.

The Skylander wasn’t surprised, but he was quite confused. “But Malefor was defeated hundreds of years ago.”

“What!?” Cynder’s eyes pointed to the ground, she couldn’t believe that the dragon who abused her her entire life was gone. “Who killed him?”

“No one really knows, but some say it was a powerful sorceress who hasn’t been seen ever since.” Spyro wondered why Cynder remained evil, even after Malefor’s demise.

“That means… I did all of this by myself.” Cynder started to tear up again. “I killed people and destroyed villages all by myself!”

“That’s not true!” Spyro tried to reassure the devastated dragon that it wasn’t her fault. “You have been manipulated your entire life. This was all Malefor’s doing, he turned you into the Black Dragon.”

Cynder looked at Spyro with thankful eyes. “You really think that?”

“Of course!” Spyro helped the dragoness to get on her feet. “And you can prove that you’re not evil!”

Cynder looked at the dragon with confusion. “How’s that?”

“By becoming a Skylander!” Spyro was always overly cheerful when recruiting new allies for his team.

“A Skylander?” Cynder thought about the idea for a second before turning her back to Spyro. “No, I can’t. Skylanders are courageous heroes and I’m… not.”

Spyro calmly walked towards the dragoness and put his paw on her shoulder. “But you can be.”

Cynder eventually decided to join the Skylanders and her friendship with Spyro improved over the years. The purple dragon has always been Cynder’s best friend and she considered him the only Skylander who she could tell everything. The dragoness often doubted her role as a Skylander, but Spyro always managed to keep her going and make her realize that she can be as much of a hero as anyone else.

* * *

 

Now the two faced another major issue and this time Spyro wasn’t sure how to help.

The dragon held Cynder by the shoulders and pushed her head back up to look into her eyes. “Whatever it is that haunts you, we will defeat it together!”

“But we can’t!” The purple dragon turned away from Spyro again. “I’m the only who can see it, it’s only out for me!”

“Then I’ll stay with you all the time!” Spyro looked at Cynder with sadness but also the hope to help her.

Cynder turned around once more and sat down at the edge of the island next to Spyro. They both looked in the distance without saying a word.

Suddenly, both heard a gloomy voice behind them. “It won’t be that easy Spyro.”

The two dragons turned their heads around to see Hex, who had just teleported herself onto the island.

“Hex! What are you doing here?” Spyro stared at the witch as she floated towards them to sit down as well.

“I took notice of Cynder’s outburst and knew what was going.” She talked without even looking into the dragon’s eyes, but in a way that didn’t seem disrespectful.

“Wait, you told Hex?” Spyro’s sight went from Hex to Cynder as he was waiting for an answer.

“If it really is Malefor, she could be a big help.” Cynder explained. “Even though he only seems interested in me.”

“Cynder is the only one who is able to see those ominous eyes.” Hex began to theorize on the topic. “That could mean that she’s also the only one who is able to get rid of them.”

“No! Cynder doesn’t have to do this alone!” Spyro became slightly angry after Hex’ statement. “I expected a bit more support from you Hex!”

“This isn’t about support.” Hex stayed completely calm, even after Spyro’s comment. “It’s about what we are facing.”

“And what would that be?” Spyro wasn’t fond of the sorceress’ mindset but wanted to hear what she had to say.

“If it truly is Malefor, he will not allow all of us to fight him.” The Undead Skylander recalled her past experiences and used them as an example. “He’s always out for one specific target and if that target dares to face him, it has to be unaccompanied.”

Cynder looked at Hex with hopelessness. “And how should I fight him? I tried to attack the eyes, but they always vanish when I do.”

Hex was silent before continuing to speak. “The eyes are only a method to terrorize you, they can’t hurt you.”

Spyro started to understand the witch better and tried to think like her. “And if Malefor reveals himself, we will be by your side to help!”

Hex nodded calmly. “You have to face your fear before you can defeat it Cynder.” The Skylander put her hand onto the dragon’s shoulder. “And when you do, you will have enough strength to defeat Malefor. Even by yourself.” Cynder gained some hope and looked up to Hex with a smile.

* * *

 

Meanwhile at the Academy, Chill and Roller Brawl were visiting several shops as usual. The two friends found a common interest through their love for purchasing rather useless things and have been inseparable ever since.

“Hey, look at this one!” Roller Brawl was eager to show Chill a wobble head figure of Eon himself.

The ice warrior tried not to laugh but soon failed miserably. “Why would anyone buy this?”

“I don’t know!” Roller Brawl pushed the figure’s head with her fingers, so it would continue to wobble. “But it was honestly worth it!”

“Then check this out!” Chill pulled out a silver wig with long flowing hair and presented it to the vampire. “A wig exclusively for iron helmets!”

Roller Brawl started to cackle to the point where tears started to form in her eyes. “Are you actually going to use that?”

Before the vampire could finish her question, the Water Skylander attached the wig to her helmet and flipped it gracefully. “Of course. You can’t fight evil without looking gorgeous while doing so!”

Both were laughing and enjoying their time together, until they finally decided to sit down on a fountain next to the library. They looked at the missing window, which had to be replaced due to Cynder breaking it accidentally.

“Do you think Cynder will be alright?” Chill returned the wig to her shopping bag and started to worry about the traumatized dragon.

“Hex told us she’d look after her.” Roller Brawl mentioned what Hex told them before joining Cynder and Spyro on the distant island. “I’m sure whatever it is, they’ll figure it out.”

The Skylanders became silent and kept on staring at the empty hole in the building. Suddenly, Roller Brawl heard a freezing sound behind her and turned around before gasping in shock. Chill turned around as well and saw that all the water in the fountain was turned to ice.

“Did you do that!?” The vampire skater looked at Chill with wide eyes.

“I- I don’t know.” Chill looked at her hands and then back at the fountain. “It wasn’t intentional.”

“Well undo it then!” Roller Brawl peeked over Chill’s head and into the library to make sure no one noticed the strange event.

Chill directed her hands at the fountain and concentrated to melt the ice, but without success. “I can’t unfreeze it! Nothing’s happening!”

Roller Brawl spotted some Skylanders heading into their direction and quickly sliced the ice with her fang blades. “The heat will do the rest. Come on!” The Undead Skylander grabbed her friend’s arm and skated past the approaching Skylanders, who looked after her curiously.

* * *

 

The sun in Skylands has once again set and Wolfgang just finished his training session with Snap Shot. As always, the werewolf played his harp on the way home and completely ignored his surroundings. That changed as soon as he was pulled behind a wall of the Academy. The Undead Skylander swung his harp into a fighting stance and was ready to slice any foe apart.

“Cut it out Wolfgang.” Golden Queen commanded the wolf, acting like the leader she once was.

Wolfgang sighed annoyed and lowered his weapon. “What do you want, Queenie?”

“First of all, I want you to show me some more respect!” The Earth Sorceress summoned her staff and pointed it at Wolfgang, which immediately caught his full attention. “And secondly, I want you to be less talkative towards the leader of our biggest enemies!”

Wolfgang was irritated by the queen’s demand. “Snap Shot? Oh don’t worry about him, he’s not going to-“

“Do not question my authority, Wolf!” The goldling glowed in a radiant light before cooling down. “I am your leader and you will do as I say!”

Wolfgang started to raise his voice “What are you worried about? I won’t tell him-“

“I can never be certain with you.” Golden Queen interrupted her angered minion once more. “I would have never thought that you and that hideous reptile would even bond over this!”

Wolfgang wasn’t happy about Golden Queen’s rude remark, but instead of speaking up, he just looked down.

“I cannot take any risks. This plan has to be treated with absolute caution.” She turned around and started to walk away from the wolf. “You better not disappoint me, or you know what will happen.”

Wolfgang gulped. “Yes, my queen.” He watched the golden woman disappear behind a wall, leaving him with an anxious feeling his stomach.


	7. The Fix is in

The upcoming day for Sprocket began as usual; busy. The Tech Skylander just finished fixing the damaged vehicles and already got a new task. She headed to the library, where a new problem recently occurred. Besides having to replace a window, she also had to fix the fountain which has been completely dry since yesterday. The engineer arrived at the library and was awaited by the Dark Supercharger Nightfall.

“Nightfall? What are you doing here?” Sprocket was surprised to be greeted by the gloomy Skylander, who she barely ever talked to.

“I’m here to help you fix the window and fountain.” Nightfall’s mask made her voice sound raspy and almost distorted, it always made her sound neutral and have the same tone. “Everyone else was busy.”

“Tell me about it.” Sprocket attempted to smile, but after seeing no reaction from Nightfall she decided to stay serious. “So, where’s the new window?”

“On its way.” The Supercharger always answered short and direct. “It should be here in five minutes.”

Sprocket looked over to the fountain. The reflected sunlight from the dry white stone was almost blinding. “Then let’s take a look at this.”

The Tech Skylander put her goggles on and observed the fountain carefully. There wasn’t any visible damage and she soon figured that there must be a problem with the connection to the water source.

“Nightfall?” She called her partners name to get her attention. “Do you know a way to get to the pipes that connect the fountain to the water source?”

“Of course.” The Skylander nodded. “It’s right underneath us.”

Sprocket looked at her with a blank expression and then at the ground. “But there’s no door leading down.”

Nightfall suddenly grabbed Sprocket and held her tight, before diving into a dark pool created by her hair. Sprocket found herself inside of the island they were just standing on and looked at all the pipes connected to the fountain with fascination.

“I don’t need doors.” Nightfall added bluntly.

“Incredible…” The tech-loving Skylander was blown away by the mechanics and parts she had never seen before. “Now let’s see where the problem is!”

With determination, Sprocket started to investigate the pipes and made sure that there were no leaks for the water to pour through. She touched the main pipe with her hands and suddenly felt a tingling coldness, which was going all the way back to the source.

“Something’s not right.” Sprocket used her wrench to knock onto the pipes. While the half leading to the fountain sounded hollow, the other half leading to the source seemed to be completely solid. “It seems there’s a problem coming from the source, like there’s something… inside.”

Nightfall wasn’t nearly as impressed as Sprocket by the whole situation, but nevertheless tried to be helpful. “Why don’t you open it?”

“I… could do that, but that may cause the whole room to get flooded.” Sprocket always thought twice when doing her job.

“Even when it’s solid and there’s no water coming through?” Nightfall’s question seemed more rhetorical than serious.

“… You’re right.” Sprocket finally agreed and screwed a section of the pipe open. What she saw had her in shock. “Ice!?”

Before Sprocket could continue, the Skylanders heard someone calling their names on top of the island.

“That must be the window. I’ll get it.” Nightfall told the confused engineer before creating another dark portal to reach the surface.

Meanwhile, Sprocket thought of a way to get rid of the ice and let the water flow again. “I can’t melt or break through the ice. I don’t think I can fix this on my own.” Sprocket was talking to herself before finally having an idea. “I know who can help!” She was about to leave the underground facility before remembering that there are no doors.  
“Uh, Nightfall? Could you possibly get me out of here?” Instead of getting an answer, the goldling was grabbed by a string of Nightfall’s hair and pulled through the earth. Sprocket shuddered after that experience, but then continued with her plan. “I need to get someone! You can stay here and fix the window in the meantime.” Nightfall watched the energetic Skylander leave before looking at the window next to her without any emotions.

* * *

 

Sprocket soon arrived at the entrance of the Fire Realm. Normally, everyone who wasn’t of the Fire Element would have to wear a special suit to protect them from the deadly heat. Since Sprocket was a goldling, she was able to resist high temperatures without any suit. The engineer headed directly to the Scorching Vault, where the blacksmiths worked on new weapons and upgraded tools. Today there was only one Skylander in the vault and it was exactly who Sprocket was looking for.

“Torch!” Sprocket approached the blacksmith who was busy forging a weapon.

The humanoid with flaming hair stopped and took her mask off to properly talk to the visitor. “Hey Sprocket! What’s up?”

“I came here to ask you for a favor.” Sprocket was afraid that she was interrupting the blacksmith but asked her anyway. “There’s a small issue with one of the fountains at the Academy. The water in the pipe is completely frozen and I thought you could use your flamethrower to-“

“Say no more!” Torch didn’t even let the Tech Skylander finish and grabbed her trusty flamethrower. “I would love to help! And honestly I have nothing better do here anyway.”

“Great!” Sprocket was happy that she found someone to help. “Nightfall is waiting for us by the library.”

Torch was surprised to hear that name. “Nightfall?”

“I was as surprised as you are.” Sprocket was referring to Nightfall offering her help. “She said everyone else was busy.”

Torch equipped her flamethrower and was ready to leave. “Isn’t Nightfall the one who’s always busy?”

Sprocket started to walk alongside the Fire Skylander. “I guess she isn’t busy when everyone else is.” Both laughed and headed back to the Academy.

* * *

 

It didn’t take Sprocket and Torch long to reach the library. They arrived to see Nightfall standing in front of a sparkling new window that clearly stood out from the rest.

“Wow, Nightfall!” Sprocket didn’t expect the silent Supercharger to fix the window that well. “The window looks great!”

“Thanks.” The dreadwalker’s response was dry as usual, but she was glad that she could help. “I see you brought Torch with you.”

Torch found it strange to point out the obvious, but nevertheless tried to smile. “Hi.”

“She’s here to help us with the fountain!” Sprocket gently hit her friend’s back. “Her flamethrower is exactly what we need here.”

“I understand.” Once again, Nightfall grabbed the two Skylanders and transported all of them back inside the island, where the pipes from the fountain are located.

Torch almost tripped over after being released by Nightfall’s grip. This was the first time the blacksmith traveled through hair. “Do you do that to everyone you meet?”

“If it’s necessary.” Nightfall kept her eyes on Torch who was still shocked and slightly terrified.

At the same time, Sprocket walked towards the frozen pipe and pointed it out with her wrench. “Our problem is right here.”

Torch followed the engineer to take a look at the ice inside of the pipe. “I assume you want me to get rid of it with my flamethrower?”

“Exactly!” The Tech Skylander put her goggles on to protect her eyes from the flames. “Just point the opening of it at the pipe and the ice will be gone in no time!”

The Fire Skylander nodded and did as Sprocket said. Nightfall was further in the back, observing the operation in silence. Finally, Torch turned her weapon on and shot a string of fire right through the pipe. Sprocket smiled with joy after seeing the ice melt and the water flow again. She quickly connected the pipe to the other half and tried to close it with her wrench. The sudden momentum of the water streaming again made the pipe to heavy and it crashed to the floor, while the water continued to pour through.

“Oh no.” Sprocket looked at the disaster in terror and started to panic. “What should we do now!”

Torch was as distressed as her friend and attempted to put the broken pipe back into place, but without success. “It isn’t working! We have to stop the water!”

Nightfall remained silent and didn’t bother to help the other two. Instead she floated towards the water source, which was located underneath the center of the Academy.

Sprocket soon noticed the Dark Skylander’s absence and became furious. “Did Nightfall just leave!?” The Skylander could recognize something floating into the distance. It wasn’t until she took her goggles off that she saw Nightfall leaving them behind, while the water was filling up the inside of the island. “Nightfall!”

Sprocket sprinted after the Supercharger, who already reached the water source. Before Sprocket could confront her, Nightfall used her hair to turn all the water in the tank into liquid darkness. The water at the end of the pipe vanished, while Nightfall was trying to contain the dark substance she created.

“Go fix the pipe.” Nightfall’s voice was shaking due to the amount of energy she had to invest in keeping the water contained.

Sprocket was amazed but rushed back to the pipe without hesitation. “We need to fix this right now!”

Torch helped the technician to put the pipe back into place. She didn’t quite understand what’s going on and started to question Sprocket. “What happened? Where did the water go?”

“No time to explain!” Sprocket finally connected the pipes with the help of the blacksmith, but realized that they wouldn’t hold for too long. Her mind was processing countless ideas, until she finally knew what to do. “Torch! Use your flamethrower to fuse the pipes together!”

Torch’s expression shifted from confused to determined and the Skylander directed her weapon at the pipes. She covered them in flames to connect them once and for all. “Done!”

As soon as the two Skylanders were finished, Nightfall couldn’t hold the water anymore and let it flow through the pipes again. There were no leaks and no ice anymore and it functioned properly again. Nightfall joined the group again, appearing as if nothing happened at all.  
The dreadwalker created another portal on the ground, allowing the remaining water to leave the inside of the island and pour into the infinite skies instead.

“Thanks.” Sprocket was very grateful for the dreadwalker’s help. She realized that she does care after all, even if she doesn’t show it.

“You’re welcome.” Nightfall grabbed Torch and Sprocket once again to return them onto the island.

The team saw the fountain in all its glory again, with crystal clear water streaming out of it. Sprocket looked at her companions and couldn’t help but giggle after seeing Torch.

“Torch… you’re-” Sprocket had to laugh before finishing her sentence.

Torch was confused again and looked at the Tech Skylander irritated. “What? What is it?”

“You’re bald.” Nightfall finished Sprocket’s sentence, realizing that the water extinguished the fire on the blacksmith’s head.

The Fire Skylander looked upwards, before her whole face blushed. She did a quick head flip to ignite the flames on top of her scalp again. “Let’s never talk about this again.” She soon smiled alongside Sprocket and they went on with their day.

* * *

 

The day has come to an end once again and the Skylanders laid to rest. Everyone but Enigma, who once again got inside an air balloon while making sure that no one noticed him. What he didn’t know is that Stealth Elf has been waiting for him. She was invisible and watched as the Trap Master entered the balloon. This time however, the Life Skylander carefully joined the mysterious mage and pushed herself against the side of the basket as much as she could. The aircraft took off before Enigma summoned the same laser as last time to lead the path. Stealth Elf silently wondered where he would take them, but she was prepared for anything.


	8. Untold Truth

The balloon has been traveling for hours now. Stealth Elf was struggling to keep her cover up, but she remained unseen. Enigma didn’t suspect anything suspicious and just focused on the laser which guided him through the sky. Stealth Elf soon noticed that their surroundings changed and shifted colors. It went from a pale blue to a deep purple, and a strange mystical fog appeared. Even though she was a Life Skylander, Stealth Elf could feel the magic surging through the air.

“What is this place?” The elf asked herself while staring at the mysterious purple area they entered. “Are we in another realm?”

Her thoughts were interrupted by the abrupt landing of the balloon. Enigma left the basket and started to walk in mid-air. Stealth Elf couldn’t believe her eyes and carefully leaned over the basket. She touched the invisible floor and indeed felt a surface. She slowly followed the Trap Master who was taking a few more steps before stopping. He raised his staff and slammed it on the ground, creating a circular wave that spread through the entire area. Stealth Elf witnessed the appearance of a seemingly endless path with rows of doors on each side. They were all huge gates and each of them was unique. Some were glorious and inviting, while others appeared dark and deadly and seemed to lead to an equally repulsive world.  
Stealth Elf heard about hidden doorways leading to different realms, but she never expected to see it with her own eyes. Enigma came from one of the many places but refused to ever talk about it. The elf could barely withhold her desire to quit her invisibility and ask the sorcerer all about this place, but she knew that it was for the best if she stayed unnoticed. The assassin couldn’t keep her eyes from observing every door and wondering to what new worlds every one of them would take her. She was so distracted, that she didn’t even notice that Enigma was talking. She could hear the voice of the mage in the distance, but she couldn’t see anyone besides him. Stealth Elf leaned her head to the right and recognized another cloaked Skylander in front of him.

“Star Strike?” The assassin once again spoke in her mind as she was walking towards the duo of Magic Skylanders.

She couldn’t make out what they were saying until she got close enough. “Are you sure it will work this time?” Star Strike sounded unsure. The mysterious female shared her secretive vibe with Enigma, which already caused some misunderstandings between them and the other Skylanders.

“I can’t make any promises, but I’ll do what I can.” Enigma answered and continued to walk down the shimmering road, this time accompanied by Star Strike.

Stealth Elf followed them further and saw many more doors, each fascinating in their own way. Finally, the Magic Skylanders stopped in front of one specific doors. Everything about it gave off a feeling of space. The arc was covered with white stars and the door itself was like a window presenting a distant galaxy. The ninja watched as Enigma held his staff tightly and started to speak a spell. The weapon glowed in a radiant light and the frame of the door reacted to it by emitting light as well. Star Strike watched eagerly while Enigma tried to stay focused and open the door. Stealth Elf squinted her eyes to see a clearance between the two halves of the door. It was slowly opening, revealing another world behind it. Star Strike raised her head and slowly moved closer to the door. She reached out for the opening and was about to put her hand through it before it the door slammed shut. Star Strike quickly pulled her hand back and looked at the sealed door with disappointment.

“I’m sorry.” Enigma said before falling on his knee and taking deep breaths. “I’m not powerful enough.”

The Magic Skylander turned around to look at the exhausted Trap Master. “No, it’s okay.” She floated towards the sorcerer who looked up to her with his hood covering the entirety of his head. “You got closer than ever before and I know that you’re doing everything you can. I’m very grateful for that.”

The intergalactic being couldn’t see Enigma’s reaction, but he seemed to be happy to hear Star Strike’s gratitude. They headed back to Enigma’s balloon, with Stealth Elf always being a few steps behind them.

“We can try again in a few days. There have been some suspicious events at the prison, so I should make sure that everything’s under control.” Enigma entered the air balloon and was ready to set off again.

“No problem.” Star Strike nodded and once again thanked the Skylander for his efforts. “I’ll see you back at the Academy.”

The cloaked creature turned around and floated back along the path. Stealth Elf slowly walked towards the balloon, trying to not cause any noise. She would soon regret that, as Enigma didn’t hesitate to lift the balloon into the air and get ready to return to the Academy. Stealth Elf ran as fast as she could, but the balloon was already too far away for her to reach it. The elf looked after the aircraft flying away, before finally cancelling her invisibility. Star Strike was already gone and the Life Skylander was stuck in an unknown realm, completely alone.

* * *

 

The sun has reached its highest point and the Academy was flourishing with life. Everyone was talking, relaxing or even training, even though clouds started to appear above the island. Snap Shot headed for the library to look for a book about archery. He was the most capable warrior when it came to bows and arrows, but he ran out of techniques to teach Wolfgang, so he decided to do some research. He found what he was looking for and took a seat on a chair on the balcony. The reptile enjoyed the cool temperature today and sensed that it would rain soon, his favorite type of weather. He was so invested in the book that he didn’t even notice Gearshift sitting on another chair on the other end of the balcony. The Trap Master jumped up in surprise but tried to play it cool by putting on a neutral expression.

“Gearshift. Didn’t see you there.” The Trap Masters had a hard time communicating with the robot since she wasn’t exactly programmed for that.

The Tech Skylander was holding a book and precisely scanned each page with her eyes, not even bothering to look at Snap Shot. “I know. I would have greeted you, but that would have interrupted my scanning process.”

“Didn’t you interrupt it now?” Snap Shot saw his companion close the book and turn her head towards him.

“Yes. I am finished now.” Gearshift’s eyes jumped from Snap Shot to his book and then back at him. “You are reading a book about archery. I assume for your sessions with Wolfgang.”

“Yeah, I kinda ran out of tricks to show him.” Snap Shot scratched the back of his head and directed his sight from Gearshift to the floor.

“You seem to be very invested in helping him.” Gearshift pointed out analytically. “That is strange considering your problematic past with Wolfgang.”

“I don’t know, he’s different now.” Snap Shot thought about the way they used to interact and compared it to the present. “I guess people can change, even the nasty ones.”

Gearshift was silent and processed what she would say next. “It appears your feelings for him have changed.”

Snap Shot opened his eyes widely and looked at the robot bewildered. “Feelings? How did you come to that?”

“My lack of emotions allows me to analyze those of others.” The Trap Master looked at the book again, rather than Snap Shot. “You do not hate him anymore.”

Snap Shot had to smile. “Well yeah, he’s not a villain anymore. We’re becoming-”

“You love him.” Gearshift interrupted and had no hesitation to tell Snap Shot the result of her analysis.

“What!?” Snap Shot had to catch himself from falling out of his chair. “Are you insane? There’s no way I’d fall for-”

“Your overreaction further proofs my statement. And ironically you did fall for him, in the literal sense.” The Skylander never stopped once she started to talk and only allowed Snap Shot to answer shortly.

The Water Trap Master couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Wait, were you watching-”

“I silently observed you two and everything I have seen lead to this conclusion.” Gearshift raised herself from the chair and the tall figure stood in front of Snap Shot. “I suggest that you avoid hiding your feelings. In most cases it will lead to a scenario which is far worse than admitting them.” She left without saying another word and left Snap Shot shocked and overwhelmed with thoughts. He did not expect that from his visit to the library.

* * *

 

The clouds covering the blue sky slowly turned darker and some decided to get underneath the next roof they could find. Tidepool chose to do the opposite. She was standing in the center of the arena, facing Wild Storm. They have agreed on another battle to test their strength. The Senseis haven’t seen each other ever since their turbulent air balloon ride and Tidepool was still upset about Wild Storm’s behavior. She wanted to finally admit her feelings, but the knight completely threw her off by claiming that they should spend less time together.  
The gong announcing the start of the battle could be heard and the Skylanders started to fight. However, the rules for this match were changed by Tidepool’s demand. They did not carry any weapons and their unique powers such as Tidepool’s whale summon and Wild Storm’s cloud roar were forbidden. They could only fight with their bare hands and physical strength.  
The fight started with Wild Storm dashing towards his opponent on all fours and attempting to pounce her. Tidepool quickly dodged the attack and returned a kick instead. Wild Storm brushed it off like it was nothing and started to punch after Tidepool. She used her arms to block the hits and finally get a hold of the Air Sensei. The quickshot used a swift move to throw him onto the ground and keep him there by holding his hands. Wild Storm used his lower body to roll backwards and get Tidepool underneath him instead. She responded to that by a headbutt which caused the beastly warrior to grunt and fall backwards. Normally, Wild Storm is more powerful in one-on-one combat, but Tidepool’s anger was bundled in each of her hits, granting her more strength than usual. They exchanged more punches and kicks until Tidepool was finally able to throw her legs around Wild Storm and tear him to the ground once more. Before he could get back up, Tidepool pinned him down with her foot and looked him dead in the eye. Raindrops started to fall from the sky and hit the combatants.

“Great job Tide!” Wild Storm freed himself from his enemy’s grip and got back on his feet. “You won, but don’t expect me to go easy on you next time.”

Tidepool kept her serious and cold expression and left without a smile or any sign of kindness. Wild Storm was confused as to why she behaved that way, and started to think that he may have done something to upset her.

* * *

 

As soon as the rain started to increase, and water was pouring from the sky, everyone was already inside, safe from the humidity. Spyro was sitting in front of the window of his room and watched single drops of water slowly run down the glass. He hasn’t seen Stealth Elf since yesterday and started to worry.

“What’s going on with everyone.” He didn’t tell anyone, but Spyro wasn’t happy about the recent events. “First Cynder and now Elf is gone.” The dragon has waited many years for the war in Skylands to end, for a time of peace. He was never able to spend much time with his friends, but now that he finally is, everyone has something that terrorizes them and prevents them from enjoying their time without fighting.  
The Skylander felt sad, but he was willing to help. He knew that the only way to have an enjoyable time with his friends was by helping them to finally get rid of their problems, once and for all.


	9. Face your Fears

The rain falling from the clouds above has been going on for an entire day and it wouldn’t stop. Everyone settled for a warm and dry spot and didn’t feel the need to go outside during this time. Roller Brawl gazed through the window inside one of the many towers of the Academy, lost in thoughts. She was looking at the fountain which Chill froze two days ago. It may have been fixed, but she couldn’t help but wonder why that happened in the first place. Was Chill losing control of her powers? Or was it something else?  
Her speculations were interrupted by the door leading to the small room opening and shortly after closing again. She turned around to see Chill, who was soaking wet from all the rain.

“Chill!” Roller Brawl looked through the room, searching for a blanket. She grabbed it and wrapped it around her friend’s shoulders. “Why were you in the rain? You should have stayed at home.”

“I was, until I remembered that I forgot my shopping bag recently.” Chill looked outside the single window and couldn’t find the bag which she last left by the fountain. “I have to ask Sprocket if she took it. At least it’s not in the rain.”

Chill was sitting on top of a pillow on the window ledge. She used the blanket that Roller Brawl gave her to dry herself, rather than keeping her warm. The vampire looked at the ice warrior and wondered what was on her mind. She didn’t want to blame her for the fountain, but she also wanted to find out what exactly happened.

“So… about that thing recently.” Roller Brawl slowly skated closer to the Water Skylander.

“The fountain.” Chill answered, already knowing what her friend would ask her. “I’m terribly sorry about that. I really don’t know what happened.” The Skylander looked at her hands before clenching them into fists and turning her head away. “I was so lost in thoughts and I guess my powers just… got a mind of their own.”

Roller Brawl was sad to see her best friend so frustrated and self-blaming. She sat down next to her and put her hand on Chill’s leg. “You don’t have to apologize. Stuff like that can always happen, and if it doesn’t happen again then we shouldn’t have anything to worry about.”

Roller Brawl smiled friendly, which Chill returned with a somewhat forced smile. The skater got back up and turned around to look for more towels to get Chill dry. While she wasn’t looking, the window next to chill suddenly started to freeze. The Skylander looked at it with terror and watched as spirals of ice started to cover the glass. In the center of it, the ice slowly disappeared, creating the picture of a snowflake. Chill was suddenly struck with fear. She wasn’t sure what her powers were trying to tell her and why, but it might be a sign for something she thought was lost forever.

* * *

 

Many hours have passed since Stealth Elf arrived, and she still had no idea how to get back. The Skylander regretted following Enigma to this mysterious realm with every second and wishes she would’ve just let it go instead.

“How many doors are there?” She was talking to herself since no one else was around. Stealth Elf has been walking down the endless path with doors ever since Enigma left, but she didn’t find a single one that looked familiar.

As fascinated as she was to be in the famous place of doorways leading to other realms, all she wanted now was to get home. She kept on looking for doors, until she finally saw one which caught her attention. It was a mirror, she could see her reflection inside of it. It had a simple golden frame and didn’t look like anything special. However, something about it pulled Stealth Elf towards it, even if it wasn’t what she was looking for. The assassin soon realized that it wasn’t even a door. There was no parting, it was just a regular mirror. She slowly moved her hand towards it to touch it, causing a strange sound on impact. It sounded like glass being cut in half, but almost reversed. The Skylander finally built up the courage to stick her whole arm through it, followed by the rest of her body.

Stealth Elf opened her eyes and looked upon a wasteland. Wind was blowing through her braided hair and it smelled like ashes and earth. There were a few trees without any leaves, barely even standing up straight. The whole world appeared grey and colorless, and the islands were empty. Stealth Elf looked around and wondered where she landed. She had an extremely unsettling feeling about this realm and shivers ran down her spine. The elf suddenly gasped and shook her head. She quickly turned around and went through the mirror again, returning to the path of doors. She stopped and turned her head around to look at the mirror again, all she could see was her reflection. She decided to get away from that cryptic door and move on with her search.

As she was walking for some time, Stealth Elf finally saw a familiar gate. It looked identical to the portal at the Academy, which already allowed them to get to other realms as well. The Skylander didn’t hesitate and entered it, just to find herself back home. Stealth Elf was overjoyed to see the grey towers and stony roads of the Academy. Even though it was raining, the elf jumped with happiness and ran into the nearest building as fast as she could.   
After she calmed down, she knew what she had to do next; confront Enigma and Star Strike.

* * *

 

Darkness. That’s all that Cynder could see, utter darkness. This time she knew right away that she was dreaming and whatever was going to happen couldn’t harm her. She looked around the empty place until they finally appeared. The eyes were right in front of her and seemed more threatening than ever before. Instead of trying to run, Cynder stayed still and looked at them without showing any fear. Once again, a mouth appeared underneath them, but instead of going after Cynder it started to talk.

“Looks like you finally have the guts to face me, Cynder.” The disembodied facial parts started to float around the dragoness.

“What do you want? Why are you doing this?” Cynder followed the creature with her eyes but didn’t move herself in the slightest. She wanted to show her tormentor that he can’t control her anymore.

“I’m doing this because you are by far one of the easiest Skylanders to manipulate.” The eyes appeared back in front of her, followed by a sinister smile. “Isn’t that right, Black Dragon?”

Cynder became slightly insecure and took a step back. As scared as she was, Cynder kept herself from running off and faced her enemy. “Is it you?” The Undead Skylander moved forward again and raised her voice. “Is it you, Malefor?”

The foe only responded by laughing, he taunted the dragon. Cynder was outraged and collected all her anger into one powerful lightning strike from her mouth. It shot right through the eyes and made them vanish, leaving the dragoness alone again.

Cynder opened her eyes and saw her room, she was laying in her bed. The dragon lifted her upper body to look out the window. Rays of sunshine were piercing through the thick rainclouds. Water was dripping from leaves and everything seemed peaceful. Cynder wasn’t sure if the eyes were gone for good, but she had a feeling that she got rid of them for now. She finally felt free.

* * *

 

The day was coming to an end and all that remained of the rain were some puddles and the smell of wet grass. The sky was a mix of orange and purple colors, and the clouds looked like floating cotton candy.  
Snap Shot was back underneath the cherry tree, the one Wolfgang and he used to practice by. He calmly watched single drops fall from the petals and let his mind drift off. The Trap Master has been thinking a lot about what Gearshift told him, as little as he wanted to believe it. He didn’t hate Wolfgang anymore, but he wasn’t sure about his feelings for him now, so he invited the wolf to meet underneath the tree. They already did their training session, so it was just a private meeting.  
Wolfgang soon crossed the bridge which connected the small island to the Academy and walked towards Snap Shot. He didn’t carry his bone harp and seemed awfully quiet as well.

Snap Shot waved while smiling to greet his new friend. “Hey Wolf!” The former Doom Raider joined the reptile by sitting down and leaning against the tree just like him.

“You wanted to talk?” Wolfgang shortly looked at Snap Shot before he directed his sight at the beautiful sunset.

“Yeah.” Snap Shot wasn’t sure how to start the conversation. As a matter of fact, he wasn’t quite sure what to say at all. “We have been training together for some time now and I just wanted to hang out with you. You know, like friends.”

Wolfgang had to laugh after Snap Shot’s answer. “Friends. I never expected to hear that from you.”

Snap Shot smiled awkwardly in return. “I honestly didn’t either.” There was silence for a few moments and the two looked away from each other. “I never thought you could actually be… nice.”

“I never thought I would be nice.” Wolfgang laughed again. “But when you’re trapped and the only way to be free again is by becoming good, you start to reconsider your life choices.”

“Well I’m glad you did.” Snap Shot gazed at the setting sun as well while talking. “You sure used to be a pain in the ass.”

Wolfgang and Snap Shot giggled and looked at each other for a brief moment again. “All I really wanted was to share my music with the world.” The wolf looked up to the sky and thought about his past. “But no one could bear to watch a werewolf play, especially with horrible music.”

Snap Shot remained silent for a second and looked at the wolf, who was lost in thoughts. “You really care about your music, huh?”

Wolfgang nodded. “It’s what always kept me going. I became a Doom Raider to spread my music all throughout Skylands, even if it involved plundering villages and enslaving innocent people.”

“It feels like that was such a long time ago.” Snap Shot was amazed by how quickly time can go by. “I’m proud of you Wolfgang.” The Skylander looked at his companion with a smile. “After everything you decided to leave your evil days behind to focus on your passion. I admire that.”

Wolfgang couldn’t help but blush after the praise. “Thanks.” He almost swallowed the word while saying it and looked away in embarrassment.  
“There’s something I have to tell you.” Wolfgang sounded hesitant, but Snap Shot could tell that it was something urgent.

“Yes?” Snap Shot tried to not get his expectations too high, but deep down he was hoping that Wolfgang would finally tell him his true feelings. The Water Skylander wasn’t even sure about his own, but that could change if Wolfgang really did like him.

The werewolf’s eyes started to move in panic. They finally landed on the sun, which almost disappeared from the sky. “No… nevermind. Just forget it!”

Snap Shot watched in confusion as the wolf quickly got back on his feet. “Wolfgang? Is everything okay?”

“I have to go!” The wolf started to run away from Snap Shot. He stopped to turn around with a deeply remorseful expression. “I’m sorry.”

Snap Shot stood up as well while the werewolf left the island, he didn’t know what was going on. Did Wolfgang love him? Was he too afraid to tell him? Then why did he run off like his life depended on it. The Trap Master asked himself questions over questions.  
The sun was finally gone, and the sky was slowly turning dark blue. Snap Shot was caught completely off guard by the ear-piercing sound of the emergency sirens. The reptile’s eyes were wide open, he turned his head around to see Cloudcracker Prison. Snap Shot heard loud, destructive noises coming from it. Whatever was going on, he had to get there as quickly as possible.


	10. Betrayal

The night sky was filled with stars. They sparkled above every island in Skylands, scattering light onto them. Snap Shot couldn’t waste a single moment looking at them, since he was in a hurry to get to Cloudcracker Prison. He could hear many noises, among them the sound of fighting. The reptile already had an idea of what was going on, but he hoped that it was false. He summoned his Traptanium bow and arrow shortly before reaching the crystallized facility. What he saw left him shocked. All of the villains escaped and fought against a few Skylanders, who were obviously outnumbered.  
Wallop used his hammers to dodge the burning peppers of Chef Pepper Jack. He couldn’t hold his guard anymore and shortly before the chef could strike, Snap Shot slammed his arrow down in front of him, throwing the villain backwards.

“Wallop, what happened!?” Snap Shot helped his teammate up and demanded answers.

“All of the villains were set free!” The Earth Skylander flaunted his hammer at an incoming missile, destroying it instantly. “Someone found and used a button that opens every cell!”

The discussion was interrupted by a wicked laughter coming from the main entrance. Snap Shot turned around to see Golden Queen, walking with pride and smiling upon the chaos.

“You!” The Trap Master was outraged and approached the villainous goldling. “Golden Queen, why are you doing this? Didn’t you redeem yourself?”

“Redeem myself? Pah!” The queen slammed her staff down to intimidate the leader of the Trap Masters. “If you really thought you could redeem the Doom Raiders, then you’re a bigger fool than I thought!”

Snap Shot was grinding his teeth and gripped his weapon tightly. His sight went to a figure behind the Doom Raider that wasn’t clearly visible. It almost seemed like it was hiding. The reptile’s pupils shrunk, and he gasped after realizing that it was Wolfgang cowering behind Golden Queen.

The queen took notice of his reaction and dragged her minion into the light. “Come out Wolfgang, don’t be so shy!” The villainess laughed with joy. “You see that Skylander? People don’t change after all!”

Wolfgang wasn’t even able to look at Snap Shot. He felt terrible for agreeing on Golden Queen’s plan, especially after finally gaining Snap Shot’s trust.  
The Water Trap Master shook his head in disbelief before he became even more furious than before.

“You miserable coward!” Snap Shot’s yelling was directed at Wolfgang, who kept on staring at the floor. “I should have never trusted you! I knew you couldn’t change!” The Skylander’s eyes started to tear up, but his sheer anger allowed him to hold them back. “I hate you!”

Golden Queen grabbed Wolfgang’s jaw with her deadly nails and looked into his eyes. “You will go out there and keep those peasants from entering! Otherwise both you and your reptile friend will spend the rest of your miserable lives as statues! Do you understand?”

Wolfgang freed himself from her grip and put an intimidating, but also hurt face on. “Yes, my queen.” The werewolf then leaped into the battle and started to fight the Skylanders with his bone harp.

Snap Shot remained angry and defended himself against the enemies’ attacks. He looked around and spotted Gearshift, who split her Traptanium gear into two pieces and used them like blades. “Gearshift!” The Trap Master turned her head to Snap Shot after hearing his call. “Go get help! We won’t make it on our own!”

“Understood!” The robot connected her gear and used it as a wheel around herself to quickly dash through the crowd and head back to the Academy.

* * *

 

Meanwhile, no one at the Academy suspected any danger. The prison was too far away for anyone to hear the fight, and the villains turned the alarms off without anyone noticing.

Stealth Elf was roaming through the Academy, looking for the mysterious Enigma and Star Strike. She hasn’t seen them since she returned from the Path of Doors, but she knew that at least one of them was here. The elf saw many familiar faces, some returned a confused stare after seeing her so tense and observative. Finally, she found what she was looking for. Star Strike was floating over the hovering bricks which served as a path to the dimensional portal. Stealth Elf used it to escape from the mysterious realm and return to the Academy, so she already knew where Star Strike would go.  
Before the Magic Skylander was able to enter the gate, Stealth Elf exited her invisibility mode after using it to sneak up to Star Strike and pushed her to the ground.

“You’re not going anywhere!” The assassin pinned the alien down, not allowing her to get back up.

“What are you doing!? Let me go!” Star Strike tried to break free from Stealth Elf’s hold, but the Life Skylander was stronger than her.

The other Skylanders turned around and wondered what was going on. Among them was Spyro, who rushed to the two Skylanders with both relief and anger. “Stealth Elf!” The dragon grabbed his friend and pulled her away from Star Strike, who brushed the dirt off herself after getting back up. “What are you doing?”

Stealth Elf used her arms to make Spyro loosen his grip and slip out of his arms. “She’s hiding something!” The elf pointed at Star Strike, exposing her in front of everyone. “She’s regularly traveling to the Path of Doors and is trying to open the gate to another realm!”

The crowd surrounding them gasped and mumbled. Some questioned what she was talking about, others have heard of the place and became worried.

Star Strike pulled out one of her fans and held the blade against Stealth Elf’s throat. “How do you know that?”

“Because I followed you!” Stealth Elf was enraged and slammed the weapon away. “I followed Enigma, he’s involved in this as well! Where is he?”

“Wait- Is that about that time you saw him leave in a balloon?” Spyro couldn’t believe Stealth Elf. “Elf are you serious? This is none of your business!”

“It is if they are planning something against us!” Stealth Elf looked at Star Strike with suspicion and distrust. “Why else would they go when no one sees them?”

“Because it’s been forbidden!” Star Strike hissed back at the distrustful assassin. “All we’re trying to do is open a harmless door to a harmless realm! We would never do anything to endanger Skylands!”

“Eon forbid the trespassing in that realm because apocalyptic danger lingers behind any simple door!” Stealth Elf used one of the oldest rules to win the argument. “Even if you’re trying to enter a harmless realm, the next door could unleash a black hole! It’s too risky!”

The fight was interrupted by the sound of a gear rolling across the ground. “Everyone, we require your assistance! The villains have escaped and are battling against us!”

Everyone was shocked to hear the news, but the Skylanders didn’t hesitate to ready their weapons and join their allies.

Stealth Elf pulled out her daggers. Before the elf ran off, she gave Star Strike one last look. “This is not over.”

* * *

 

Everyone was heading towards Cloudcracker Prison, some quicker than others. Chill was among the last ones since her heavy armor prevented her from running any faster. While running, she took notice of one of the fountains they passed. It started to freeze as soon as Chill got near. The Water Skylander separated herself from the crowd to investigate the strange appearance. She slowly walked towards the pond, which was completely frozen by the time she looked into it.

“Chill.” A strange voice sounded. “Chill.” It repeated the warrior’s name. Chill swiftly looked around herself, searching for the one talking to her.

“Who are you?” She asked without even knowing where to look.

“You know who I am.” The pond started to glow in a tender white light, which caught Chill’s attention. As the human was staring into the frozen water, two eyes appeared from underneath the ice. They had icy blue irises and pupils in the shape of snowflakes. “Don’t you want to see your queen again?”

Chill gasped and couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “No… it can’t be!”

“Chill!” Another voice called the Skylander. It was Roller Brawl, who skated all the way back after noticing her friend’s absence. “Come on! The others need our help!”

Chill looked back at the pond, it reverted back into regular water. “Of course, I’m coming!” She followed the vampire and tried to run as fast as she could. Even though Chill could no longer hear the voice, all she could think about was what she just experienced. After all these years of searching, she may have finally found the person she dedicated her life to again.

* * *

 

Back at Cloudcracker Prison, the Trap Masters were still battling against the escaping villains. Snap Shot used his weapon to shoot down any enemy that tried to escape. He fought through the monster hoards until he finally saw Wolfgang. The Doom Raider viciously attacked other Trap Masters, and tried to keep them from following him. The wolf ran away from the battle to get behind the prison. The Skylanders followed him but were stopped by Snap Shot.

“This one’s mine! Take care of the others!” His companions nodded and left. Snap Shot was still hurt and frustrated by Wolfgang’s betrayal, so he wanted to take care of him personally. The reptile soon reached his enemy and pointed an arrow at him. “Take one more step and this arrow will end up in your throat!” Snap Shot’s hatred was reignited, and he could feel it burning throughout his entire body.

Wolfgang stopped immediately and turned around, he didn’t want to fight. “Snap Shot-“

“Shut up!” Snap Shot roared and pulled his arrow even further. “We trusted you! We thought that you would finally stop this tyranny, but you betrayed us!” The crocodile’s teeth gnashed from anger. “I trusted you!”

Without hesitating, the Trap Master shot his arrow. Wolfgang used his bone harp to dodge the attack, which was followed by Snap Shot running towards him. The two got into an intense battle. They exchanged heavy strikes and it was an equal match. Wolfgang decided to pull out an arrow and shoot it at the Traptanium bow, throwing it to the ground.

“You got that from me!” Snap Shot reminded the wolf of their training and was furious that he used his own techniques.

“I don’t wanna fight Snap!” Wolfgang dropped his weapon to the ground. “I never wanted this! This is the queen’s work!”

“Then why are you on her side?” Snap Shot didn’t bother to pick up his weapon and instead yelled at Wolfgang from a distance.

“She’s… our leader.” Wolfgang wasn’t proud of himself. “She manipulates all her followers to do her bidding, I had no choice!”

“Of course, you did!” The Water Trap Master took one step closer to his foe. “You could’ve fought alongside us! You could be a Skylander!”

Snap Shot stopped to talk after hearing the arrival of an army. He went back to the other side of the building to see countless Skylanders joining the battle. The Water Skylander was happy, but that changed after he realized that Wolfgang disappeared. Snap Shot took his weapon once more and decided to help his allies against the other villains.

* * *

 

Meanwhile, Sprocket entered Cloudcracker Prison without any villain spotting her. She wanted to fix the cells and make sure that the enemies can’t escape once they’re trapped again. In the heart of the facility, Dreamcatcher was absorbing energy from a crystal which powered the prison.

“Hey!” Sprocket shouted and held her wrench tightly. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Dreamcatcher stopped the absorption and looked at the goldling with distaste. “Ew, what are you supposed to be? A low-budget version of Goldy?”

Sprocket didn’t answer and instead rushed towards the villainess. As she tried to hit the head with her wrench, Dreamcatcher easily floated out of the way and launched a tornado at the Skylander. Sprocket quickly used her glove to build a turret. Instead of catching Sprocket, the cyclone enwrapped the weapon and tore it into pieces. The engineer pulled out one of her mines and used her wrench to toss it at Dreamcatcher. The Air villain took the hit and became furious. She summoned a mechanical claw with a bow attached to it, which dived right towards Sprocket. It grabbed the Tech Skylander by her shirt and lifted her into the air to face Dreamcatcher.

“Did you actually think you could beat me? You’re too lame for that!” The floating head laughed, revealing her hideous teeth with braces.

“We will stop you!” Sprocket tried to free herself from the grip of the claw, but it made it impossible for her to do so. “The others will-”

Before Sprocket could finish her sentence, the main entrance slammed open. The Skylanders defeated the villains and guided them back into their cells!”

“They did it!” Sprocket smiled with joy and looked Dreamcatcher into the eyes with confidence. “Give up already, you’ve lost!”

Dreamcatcher remained calm and only laughed at Sprocket’s statement. “Are you sure about that?”

The next thing she knew, Sprocket found herself on the floor of the same room she just battled Dreamcatcher in. “It… was just a dream.” Sprocket looked around herself. There were no signs of Dreamcatcher, nor victory. She wanted to get back to the others, but every door was locked. “Hey! Someone get me out of here!” The Tech Skylander slammed against the door, hoping that someone would hear her.

* * *

 

The battle in front of the prison was still in full swing. The villains couldn’t fight the Skylanders off to escape, but the Skylanders couldn’t get the villains back into the prison either. It was an intense fight, and everyone did their best to succeed. Snap Shot lead the other Trap Masters in order to keep all the villains in sight. He soon noticed Wallop near the stairs leading to the entrance. It looked like he was about to hit someone, but he couldn’t make out who. Snap Shot was able to get a glimpse of the villain laying in front of the Earth Skylander. He could recognize the orange fur anywhere.

“Wolfgang?” Snap Shot walked towards Wallop from behind, but didn’t interfere.

Golden Queen watched as the Skylander edged closer to the wolf, she wasn’t concerned in the slightest. Finally, Wallop threw his hammer behind himself and leaned forward to crush the werewolf. The Trap Master stopped shortly before the strike, he felt an unbearable pain in his stomach. The Trap Master looked down to see a blue Traptanium arrow covered in blood. Snap Shot pierced his ally with it before he could end Wolfgang. The Earth Skylander stumbled on his feet, until he finally fell to the ground with a heavy thump.   
Snap Shot was paralyzed. He couldn’t believe what he just did. He killed his friend to protect a Doom Raider. The reptile slowly turned his head around, he couldn’t hide the fear in his eyes. All Skylanders and every villain stopped to look at the tragedy in shock. No one said a word, they had to process what just happened.

“My results were correct.” Gearshift was the first one to say something, and this time even she sounded surprised.

“He killed him!” Tuff Luck was right behind Snap Shot and saw the murder with her own eyes. “He’s one of them!”

The entire crowd became furious and started to shout in rage. They were angry at Snap Shot, who only moved away from them without even trying to defend himself.

“This is what I call a betrayal!” Golden Queen’s powerful voice silenced everyone. The queen descended from the stairs and stopped in front of Wallop’s body. “I did expect one of you to die, but not like this.” The wicked goldling looked back at Wolfgang with satisfaction. “Good job Wolfgang, you really got this one.”

“I-” Snap Shot couldn’t force a word out of his mouth. He didn’t want to kill Wallop, but he didn’t want Wolfgang to die either.

“You don’t have to apologize.” Golden Queen reassured the Trap Master. “This was your decision wasn’t it?” Snap Shot looked at the queen and felt panicked after her sentence. “You decided to kill your ally in order to protect your foe. That’s quite… ironic.”

The rest of the Skylanders were angry and shocked. They remained silent while Golden Queen was talking, but their looks were enough to let Snap Shot know how they felt.

“It seems to me that your friends aren’t happy about that.” The other villains, including Dreamcatcher, started to gather behind the sorceress and smile sinisterly. “Staying with them wouldn’t be a very smart decision.”

“What do you want?” Snap Shot broke free from his trance and yelled at the leader of the Doom Raiders.

“You’re one of us now, Snap Shot.” Golden Queen’s mouth formed into a slight evil smile and she reached her hand out to the Water Skylander. “Come with us. You’re not wanted here anymore.”

Snap Shot took another look at his friends. Their expressions were spiteful, and he knew that he would be in trouble if he stayed. The reptile turned around and after a long moment of thought, he grabbed Golden Queen’s hand.

The villainess smiled. “Now.” She spoke a command which lead to Dreamcatcher creating a whirlwind around all the villains. It engulfed them to the point where no Skylander could see them anymore. After it vanished, they were all gone. Golden Queen, the villains and Snap Shot disappeared without a sign.


	11. Lost

Everything was silent, the sun was rising, birds were chirping. The Skylanders couldn’t believe what just happened. Tuff Luck couldn’t bear just standing there and sprinted towards Wallop, whose blood painted the rocks underneath him red.

The feline pushed her fingers onto his neck to feel if there was a pulse. “He’s alive!”

Everyone was surprised, some joined Tuff Luck to help, while others went off to find something they could use to carry him.

“He needs immediate medical attention.” Gearshift was standing right next to Tuff Luck and informed the others about his condition.

“Out of the way!” Knight Light shouted as he squeezed himself through the crowd. Ka-Boom and the angel found a red cloth which is normally used for decoration. They rolled the Earth Skylander on top of it and quickly carried him to the hospital. Whirlwind was the most experienced Skylander with healing abilities, so she would take care of the lethal wound.

The ones that remained outside were worried, scared even. “What do we do now?” Someone asked in agony. “How could he do that?” Another questioned Snap Shot’s decision to join the Doom Raiders. “Where did they go?”

Questions over questions and Spyro was in between all of them. He was the leader, he carried the responsibility in such situations. Everyone turned to him and asked him for advice. The dragon was overwhelmed and didn’t know how to help them.

Stealth Elf made her way through the cluster of Skylanders to support her friend. “We should go talk to Eon.” Spyro nodded and followed the elf who guided him back to the Academy.

The doors leading to Eon’s office opened with a loud noise. “Master Eon! Did you-”

“Yes, Spyro. I saw everything.” The spirit used his astral powers to observe the recent events. “What just occurred is the beginning of a new war.” The old man looked at his two former students with a stern and almost intimidating vibe.

“Eon, I promise I will fix this.” Spyro sounded desperate, he didn’t know how to set things right. This is something that never happened during his time as the leader.

“I’m certain you will.” Eon kept gazing outside of his window and thought about the consequences that will come with this. “Even though I’m the one to blame.”

“What!?” Stealth Elf and Spyro were bewildered and wondered what he was talking about.

“I shouldn’t have assigned Snap Shot to train with a Doom Raider. I didn’t expect him to grow this close to Wolfgang and… join their side.” Eon turned around and floated through his office. “It was a mistake to allow the villains to join us. They simply cannot be redeemed.”

“What should we do now?” Stealth Elf usually always had a plan at hand, but even she was clueless this time.

“We will track down the Doom Raiders and make sure that all of them return to Cloudcracker Prison.” The spirit turned his back to the two Skylanders. “Forever.”

Spyro gulped and made his way back outside, followed by Stealth Elf. They were eagerly awaited by the hoard of Skylanders and their questions. Spyro was once again overrun by everyone, but instead of fleeing, the dragon inhaled and unleashed a mighty flame into the air. Everyone turned silent and watched their leader collect his thoughts.

“Everyone, listen up!” The Skylander talked with a strong tone and raised himself into the air with his wings. “The Doom Raiders tricked us once again. I know you’re angry and scared, but we have to focus on our next move!” The heroes looked at the purple dragon with awe and clung onto his every word. “We don’t know where they went, or what they will do next, but we do know that they’re out there together! I will assign groups that will head out into every corner of Skylands to look for any escaped villain. If you find one, trap them immediately!” The crowd was determined, and everyone was aware of the urgency in this situation. “Do not face a Doom Raider alone! Today we saw what they’re truly capable of, make sure to stay together.”

“And don’t kill your allies in order to protect them.” Stealth Elf was referring to Snap Shot’s betrayal. Some Skylanders in front of her clenched their fists with rage after remembering what he did.

“Yeah… don’t do that.” Spyro also had to process that fact and tried not to give it too much attention. “The first missions will begin tomorrow! I want everyone to give me an exact report of any hints that could lead us to the villains. Is that clear?” Spyro’s allies nodded. “Good. Now go and prepare yourselves, you’ll need it.”

The crowd separated into smaller groups. Everyone was talking about their plans and theories regarding the escaped Doom Raiders. Some immediately went to visit the training section of the Academy, which caused a big queue. A few Trap Masters decided to check on Wallop and make sure that he’s okay. The Earth Skylander was still unconscious, but Whirlwind was able to keep him alive and tend to his wounds. It was a dark time for the Skylands, a time no one expected to come again.

* * *

Spyro and Stealth Elf walked alongside each other while discussing further plans. The atmosphere was tense, and everything appeared darker than it did the last few weeks. Stealth Elf only shortly looked to her left when she saw Enigma and Star Strike again. She stopped talking to Spyro and instead approached the Magic Skylanders. The dragon soon took notice of that and tried to stop her.

Star Strike interrupted her conversation with Enigma and looked over to the approaching assassin. The mysterious alien expected another argument. “Stealth Elf, listen-”

Spyro ran after his friend in fear that she would ignite another fight. “Elf, wait!”

“I’m sorry.” Stealth Elf left everyone surprised with those two words and they were silent for a few seconds.

“You are?” Star Strike couldn’t think of a better response and just wanted to hear the elf’s explanation.

“After the recent fight, I realized that we have to stick together and trust each other.” Stealth Elf sounded truly sorry about her behavior and looked at the grey bricks she was standing on, before returning her sight to Star Strike. “I shouldn’t have stuck my nose into your business and I trust you that whatever it is you’re doing, it won’t endanger Skylands.”

“Wow.” Spyro felt every word of her apology, even if it wasn’t directed towards him. He never heard such sentences from the rather proud warrior.

“I don’t know what to say…” Star Strike expected anything but an apology from Stealth Elf. “Thank you.”

The Life Skylander nodded, indicating that the two have made amends.

“I’m sure you still want to know what we were doing there.” Enigma, who listened to the conversation in silence, finally spoke up about the situation.

“If you don’t mind telling us.” Stealth Elf didn’t demand answers, but nevertheless she wanted to know what the fuss was about. Spyro’s interest was awakened as well and he sat down next to his friend.

“As you know, I originated from a hidden realm which was impossible to access.” Enigma talked about his biography, which every Skylander has in their record for others to see. “My staff allowed me to leave my home and enter the Skylands, even if it meant closing the door to my realm forever.” Star Strike knew what it was like to never be able to go back home, and she thought about her own realm as her companion was talking. “Now, me and Star Strike are trying to reopen the door to a realm to retrieve an ancient artifact.”

“What kind of artifact?” Spyro was extremely curious and restrained himself from asking more questions.

“It’s called the Book of Destiny.” Enigma used his staff to project said book for the others to see. It was an enormous brown leather book with golden accents and decorated with glowing light blue gems. On the front of the cover, there was a symbol which almost resembled the Core of Light before its destruction.  
“It’s said to be the oldest piece of literature in history. It was created with the creation of Skylands itself and it recorded every event from the beginning until now.”

“Why have we never heard of it?” Spyro asked whilst still being entranced by the book.

“It’s a secret the people from Enigma’s realm kept to themselves. After their home was discovered by the forces of evil, they transported the book to another realm.” Star Strike answered for the Trap Master. “Since I come from a different realm too, Enigma thought I could help him to enter the unknown place and find the book.”

“But what do you need it for?” Stealth Elf was skeptical about their plan. “We have several books about the history of Skylands in our library.”

“It doesn’t only show the past.” Enigma responded this time. “It can also show the future.”

Spyro’s eyes widened. “How is that possible?”

“As I said, it’s an ancient relic. The magic within it is unlike any other.” The mage finally cancelled the projection of the book and held his staff next to his body. “If we could get the book and look through the pages-”

“We could see the future!” Star Strike’s excitement caused her to finish Enigma’s sentence.

“That means we could also see how we will catch the Doom Raiders!” Stealth Elf was filled with hope again and looked at Enigma with her glowing white eyes.

“And we can prevent future problems!” Spyro added and was just as excited as his friend.

“It’s not that simple.” Enigma popped the Skylanders’ bubble to bring them back to reality. “The future is unpredictable, there are infinite outcomes to every situation. It can show us how to find them on one page, but then show us our failure and their reign over Skylands on the other.” Spyro and Stealth Elf watered their positivity down and weren’t keen about that outcome. “We can’t analyze the book and follow it step by step, we can only use it to guide us to our goal.”

Spyro sighed but returned to his determined state right away. “Well in that case we can go find the book to see where the Doom Raiders could be!”

“Exactly!” Enigma was happy that the dragon caught onto what he was trying to say.

“I guess we already have a mission then.” Stealth Elf crossed her arms and was ready to set off to the Path of Doors without having to be invisible this time.

Spyro, Stealth Elf and Enigma all headed to the air balloon island while talking. Star Strike was still lost in her thoughts and didn’t even notice their absence. No one ever knew what she was thinking about, but whenever she did, it seemed like she was in another world.

“Star are you coming?” Enigma asked the hooded Skylander after noticing that she stayed behind.

“Yeah, sorry!” Star Strike snapped out of her passive state and followed the other three right away.

* * *

Roller Brawl and Smolderdash were inside of the Cloudcracker Prison. The two Skylanders wanted to check for any damages or even remaining villains. They parted their ways to cover the gigantic building, but always managed to stay close enough to talk to each other.

“Didn’t Sprocket come in here during the fight?” Smolderdash levitated through the crystallized chambers to investigate the different cells.

“Yeah, I think she did.” Roller Brawl made a round through the facility and found herself back in the center with the crystal that was used as a power source. “Guess she left with the Doom Raiders too.” The vampire snickered to lighten the mood.

“This isn’t funny, Roller.” Smolderdash was usually light-hearted, but she was truly concerned this time. “I stayed near the prison the whole time, I never saw her get out.”

“Well then let’s go back to the Academy and look there. I’m sure she’s already working on something to track down the villains.” Roller Brawl looked up to see the Fire Skylander slowly descend to the ground.

“I guess you’re right.” Roller Brawl skated off before Smolderdash followed her, hoping to find her friend soon.

* * *

There was an enormous island in one of the most abandoned corners of Skylands. It was filled with trees of every kind. Only few knew of the jungle’s existence, among them was the Golden Queen. And that’s where she and the rest of the Doom Raiders went after escaping from Cloudcracker Prison.

“What’s our next step, your majesty?” Dreamcatcher just transported the gang a far distance and was exhausted, but not enough to dismiss her leader.

“We wait.” Golden Queen responded blankly and looked at the vast collection of trees surrounding them. “You all did a good job today, for once it wasn’t an utter disappointment.” The sorceress glared over to Snap Shot and Wolfgang, they stood next to each other and didn’t speak a word. They had to recover from what happened only minutes ago. “You too, Snap Shot.” Golden Queen smiled which caused the Skylander to distance himself even more from the group.

Dreamcatcher heard muffled sounds behind her. The head turned around and put on a displeased expression. “And… what do we do with her?”

Golden Queen approached the person she was referring to. The others gathered around as well and looked at their queen with anticipation.

Golden Queen’s irritated mien changed to another evil smile. “Well, we need something to motivate the Skylanders, don’t we?”

Everyone laughed and looked at Sprocket, who was tied up like an animal and looked at her enemies with hatred.


	12. Save the Day

The Doom Raiders made themselves comfortable in the bare location on the island surrounded by trees. They all chose their own spots as far away from each other as possible. Golden Queen had some smaller creatures build a tent for her, which she of course turned to gold as soon as it was done.  
Everyone was busy and wallowed in their freedom, except for Snap Shot. He couldn’t stop thinking about his action during the fight. The way he shot his arrow through one of his oldest companions, the regret was tormenting him. And now he was one of them, the very same group of malicious creatures he swore himself to stop once and for all. The traitor saw Sprocket all tied up at the other side of the camp. Her look was devastating, and it pierced through his soul. Snap Shot quickly turned his head away, he couldn’t bear to see one of his allies like that.

“You okay, mate?” Wolfgang was using some wood to build himself a small shelter. He seemed far more relaxed and calm now that they were out in the open.

“What do you think?” Snap Shot practically spit the words at the wolf. He was the reason the reptile was with the Doom Raiders, and he started to question how he could betray his team for someone like him.

“Thanks, by the way, for saving my fur back there.” Wolfgang played the situation down and started to behave more like his old self.

“I saved your life back there!” Snap Shot shouted angrily and finally stood up instead of sitting against one of the many trees. “I’m not even sure why, you clearly don’t deserve it!”

Wolfgang’s response was a simple shrug followed by a bold statement. “I never asked you to save me.” The musician went on with his business and didn’t bother to give Snap Shot another look.

Snap Shot was furious. First his supposed friend betrays everyone who trusted him, and now his personality is shifting back to when he was one of their biggest enemies. The Trap Master was disgusted, not only by Wolfgang, but also by himself. He couldn’t believe that he could ever have feelings for his worst nemesis.

* * *

 

Back at the Academy, everyone was slowly processing the recent events and cooled down. Wallop was still unconscious and received constant medical supervision. Spyro gathered some of the most experienced Skylanders to discuss further plans and theories on the location of the Doom Raiders. Many of the exhausted heroes went to bed, while others couldn’t even stand still for a second. Smolderdash looked upon the disaster from the top of one of the many towers.

“Why did this have to happen?” The Fire Skylander thought to herself. “I could’ve done more, I could’ve prevented this.” The humanoid was drowning in self-doubt and felt completely useless as a Skylander. “And Sprocket is gone too. Did they really- no it can’t be!”

The Skylander used her abilities to slowly float down to the ground and ask some Skylanders if they have seen the engineer. Everyone was as clueless as Smolderdash herself, some told her that she wanted to go inside of the prison during the ambush, but she already knew that.  
The hot-blooded female became increasingly worried for her friend and decided to look around the Academy and nearby islands for her. After hours of searching, there was still no sign of her. The Fire Skylander was sad and frustrated. The only thing she could do was to announce Sprocket’s absence so that everyone would start looking for her. Before Smolderdash reached the central room of the Academy, where most Skylanders stayed, she saw that a tower was slowly being covered in ice. Soon the others looked up and spotted it as well.

“What is that?” A confused and irritated voice asked from the crowd.

Everyone was paralyzed by the sight of the continuously freezing bricks. “I’ll check it out!” Smolderdash exclaimed and quickly made her way to the tower.

The Skylander floated up the spiraling flight of stairs. Ice was covering each step and flowed down like water. Smolderdash became slightly scared and bursted through the door leading to the room of the tower.

“Chill?” Smolderdash saw the warrior sitting in front of the single window of the room.

Chill stared at nothing but the clouds in the sky. She realized that most of the window was frozen, but the Skylander was shocked after turning around to see her entire room coated in ice. “I’m so sorry!” Chill immediately jumped up and stopped the freezing process. She lifted her hands and tried to revert it, but it didn’t work. “I can’t control it.” The Water Skylander whispered to herself so that Smolderdash couldn’t hear her.

“It’s okay, Chill!” Smolderdash slowly approached the distressed Skylander and performed careful hand gestures. “Just calm down and everything will be fine.”

Chill looked at the Fire Skylander with a bewildered look. How was she supposed to calm down after hearing the voice of her long-lost queen, a person she promised to protect until the end of her days, calling her. Her breathing slowed down, and she tried to relax, but that vision she saw before the fight at the prison has been all she could think of ever since.

“I’m fine.” Chill sounded like anything but fine. “I just need some time for myself.” The Skylander grabbed the chair next to her and pulled it closer to sit on it. It seemed like she didn’t even notice that the chair was frozen just like everything else in her room.

“Okay then.” Smolderdash was weirded out by Chill’s behavior but didn’t want to upset her in any way. “I think I can fix this.” Smolderdash sounded unsure, but nevertheless she was willing to try. The Skylander raised her hands above her head and emitted hot air from the holes that were located on her palms. The ice in the room started to melt and drip to the floor. Chill watched in awe as the ice she created slowly disappeared. Soon the entire tower was warmed up again and there wasn’t a single frozen brick left.

“Thanks.” Chill was very grateful and felt sorry for the trouble she caused.

“No problem!” Smolderdash smiled and responded cheerfully. “It’s been pretty rough, so things like these can happen.”

Chill nodded and walked past the Skylander to leave the tower. She didn’t want to be near others while her powers weren’t under control.

Smolderdash was happy that she could help someone. The feeling of uselessness which plagued her for some time now was weakened, and she felt the confidence to tell everyone about Sprocket’s mysterious disappearance.

* * *

 

Back in the hidden forest, the Doom Raiders have settled down and started to discuss their own further plans.

“We should totally start terrorizing villages again!” Dreamcatcher exclaimed mischievously.

“What’s the point of that?” Chef Pepper Jack didn’t agree with the Air villain and suggested another idea. “We need improved weapons first! We can’t take on Skylands by ourselves!”

Dr. Krankcase just dropped one of his several hat bots to the ground. It was damaged, and he attempted to fix it, but without success. “You know, I could create weapons that have the ability to pulverize anything they hit, but the resources in this forest are too… natural.”

Wolfgang was sitting on the stump of a tree behind the group. He pulled the strings of his bone harp to create a small melody and wasn’t interested in any of his fellow Doom Raider’s plans. “Or we could just do whatever we want.”

The villains all glared at the wolf with a strange look, before going back to their plans. “Enough already!” Golden Queen slammed her staff on the grass underneath her, leaving a few of the straws covered in solid gold. “You’re all suggesting that we do the same things we did the last time?”

The Doom Raiders looked at each other blankly before nodding to confirm the queen’s assumption.

“Am I the only one with a proper brain in this group?” Krankcase raised his finger and was about to speak, but immediately shut his mouth after Golden Queen struck him with a furious gaze. “Everything we did lead us to failure! We can’t allow the Skylanders to ruin our plans this time!”

The queen’s allies were all quiet and embarrassed about their ideas. They knew that she was right and that they had to change something.

“What we need to do, is get the Skylanders out of our way!” The goldling was taller than any other member of the Doom Raiders, she used that to assert her leadership and power. “Chef Pepper Jack!”

The yelling of the queen had the chef jump up in surprise and face his leader with respect. “Yes, your majesty?”

“Command your minions to launch their attack at the Academy.” Golden Queen already knew the exact steps of her plan. “They shouldn’t be prepared for an assault this early.”

“Of course, your highness.” The living vegetable quickly headed to his shelter to contact some of his minions, who were waiting on a sign for attack.

“We’ll get rid of all of them.” Golden Queen turned her head around to check on Sprocket, who was still tied up and deeply frustrated by the situation. “One by one.”

* * *

 

At Skylanders Academy, Tidepool resided inside of Persephone’s house. The Sensei wanted to make sure that her weapons and marine companions were all in-tact, so she visited the fairy to get some power-ups. While Tidepool was waiting for the small helper to catch some magical butterflies, Wild Storm entered the room. Tidepool turned around just to turn away again after seeing the Air Skylander.   
They haven’t talked ever since their duel in the arena and Tidepool had no intentions to change that.

“Upgrading your weapons, huh?” Wild Storm stood next to his friend and started a casual conversation.

“Why do you ask?” Tidepool kept her eyes at the window across of her. “Do you suddenly want to spend time with me?”

Wild Storm sighed and sensed an upcoming argument. “Tidepool, please don’t take what I said so serious-”

“Why do you act like it never happened?” Tidepool interrupted the knight and asked him another question. “You said that as if we didn’t know each other for years. Do you expect me to be happy about the fact that you don’t want us to be as close anymore?”

Wild Storm didn’t say anything and tried to understand the Skylander’s point of view. “I know why you’re mad, and I don’t want us to drift apart.” He stopped before continuing. “But it’s for the best.”

Tidepool’s expression suddenly became extremely angry. “There it is again! First you tell me you want us to stay friends, and then you say it’s better if we weren’t!”

Wild Storm didn’t expect to anger his friend so much, but he wanted to explain his reasoning. “Tidepool, I-”

Before the Air Sensei could continue, a loud explosion could be heard nearby. The two Skylanders rushed outside to see a bunch of panicking Skylanders at the Academy.

“We’re under attack!” A Skylander yelled with fear while running to find a safe spot.

An airship was firing cannonballs at the island, and no one expected an attack to happen now. It was controlled by the minions which Chef Pepper Jack ordered to assault the Academy.

Spyro soon took notice of the disaster and quickly headed to the defense canons of the giant building. “They’re not working! Someone sabotaged them!” The dragon exclaimed while trying everything to get the weapons to work.

Smolderdash fearlessly dashed past some helpless Skylanders. The Fire Skylander floated towards the aircraft and launched a burning orb at one of the cannons. The attack disabled the weaponry and it couldn’t shoot anymore missiles.   
While Smolderdash took care of the left side of the ship, Wild Storm transformed into his beast form and pounced on top of the ship. He easily smacked the small enemies off board and crashed through the wooden deck. Inside of the ship, the beast used his immense strength to demolish the row of cannons.

Smolderdash and Wild Storm finally destroyed all the weapons and let the airship slowly sink down in the sky. While Smolderdash returned to the Academy to be greeted with relief and praise, Wild Storm stood at the edge of a path and watched the broken aircraft descend into the clouds. Tidepool was a few feet behind him and wasn’t sure what to say. That worry soon became unnecessary, after Wild Storm gave her one short look before running off.

Smolderdash was happy that she could help and smiled at every grateful face she saw. The fiery humanoid snapped out of that moment after overhearing Spyro talking about the sabotaged cannons and how they should call Sprocket to fix it. The Fire Skylander moved away from the crowd and positioned herself in the center of the Academy with a serious expression. Everyone turned silent and all eyes were on her.

“Fellow Skylanders!” Smolderdash spoke loudly to make sure that everyone could hear her. “I want to announce that I have noticed something which should concern all of us!”

The heroes in front of her started to mumble and wonder what she was talking about.

“Sprocket is missing!” Smolderdash finally revealed her worry. “And I believe that the Doom Raiders are behind her disappearance.”

Gasps could be heard, and the others shared Smolderdash’s concern. “We have to inform everyone about her absence and start looking for her. We can’t leave any of our allies behind, especially not someone as resourceful as Sprocket!”  
Everyone agreed with the Skylander and they were ready to spread the news and start to search. “Please, we have to work together to find Sprocket and stop the Doom Raiders once and for all!”


	13. Questions and Answers

At last, Spyro announced the first team of Skylanders that would head out to look for the Doom Raiders and Sprocket. Spitfire, High Volt, Nightfall and Tidepool have been assigned to visit the Know-It-All-Islands and ask the Stone Heads about the whereabouts of the villains and their lost ally. Tidepool sat next to Spitfire inside of the Hot Streak, while Nightfall joined High Volt in the Shield Striker. With the help of a dimensional rift, the Skylanders soon arrived on a track leading to the destination.

“Why is it that the two of us always get paired up?” High Volt directed his question at Spitfire as the Superchargers were racing along the path.

“Probably because I’m the leader and you’re the wannabe leader.” Spitfire giggled while High Volt was as unamused as usual with the spirit’s teasing.

The two females that came along remained silent and only stared at the road ahead. “I am surprised you two are even allowed to go on missions together after your… argument.” Nightfall finally spoke up.

Spitfire remembered the Multi-Terrain Race and wasn’t too proud of his behavior. “Heh, yeah. That was just a small conflict Volty and I had.”

High Volt was also embarrassed about that day, and the fact that Spitfire keeps calling him Volty. “Yeah, that’s definitely not happening again.”

The four Skylanders arrived at the famous islands and were greeted by a Stone Head as soon as they left the vehicles. The group passed a bridge leading to the islands and started to look for more of the ancient statues.

“Our mission is to ask the Stone Heads about the location of the Doom Raiders and Sprocket.” High Volt was standing in front of the other three and adopted the leader role. “We should split up and each look for a stone.”

The Skylanders nodded and parted their ways. Spitfire soon saw a Stone Head and dashed in front of it using the fuel in his flame wings. “Hey, Stone Head! Can you tell me about the Doom Raiders?”

The Stone Head opened its eyes and awoke from its sleeping state before starting to speak. “I tell you about Golden Queen. She desires-”

“No, I already know that!” Spitfire stopped the stone from talking any further and wasting his time. “Tell me where they are now!”

“The Doom Raiders betrayed the Skylanders and fled, right after one of you was shot and left dead.” The Stone Heads always spoke in rhymes and often told unnecessary details.

“Yeah…” Spitfire didn’t want to think about that and just decided to listen further.

The statue continued to speak. “If you seek to find the queen and her friends, you need to travel to the farthest of ends.”

“That wasn’t very helpful.” Spitfire was disappointed by the information he received and hoped to hear more.

The Stone Head interpreted Spitfire’s sentence as a question and answered on that instead of the one the Skylander wanted. “Helpful is something you are not either, even though you are considered the leader.”

“Excuse me!?” Spitfire felt insulted and was surprised to hear such a personal remark from the head. “I didn’t come here to listen to you doubting my role as a leader!”

Spitfire turned around and floated away from the Stone Head, which once again responded upon his sentence. “He is still young and has a lot of pride, but the day will come where he can no longer hide.” Spitfire was already too far away to hear those words and decided to look for another Stone Head instead.

* * *

 

While the team was looking for answers, Spyro was on an airship waiting for someone to arrive. The dragon was looking at the many towers of the Academy, he was so distracted that he didn’t notice Stealth Elf, Enigma and Star Strike standing behind him.

The Magic Skylander turned around and nearly fell from the ship in surprise. “How do you manage to sneak up on people like that?”

“We… didn’t.” Enigma responded while the other two kept a neutral expression.

“Anyway, are you ready to go?” Spyro spread his wings to fly over the Skylanders and onto the roof of the cockpit.

“Yes, captain!” Stealth Elf jokingly referred to Spyro as the captain, even though Flynn was steering the ship as usual.

After Enigma and Star Strike revealed their plans to their leader and his stealthy friend, Spyro wanted to travel to the Path of Doors himself and try to open the gate the mysterious Magic Skylanders were talking about. Possessing a book that grants them a look into the future could be the solution to all their problems, so he was willing to find it.   
After a rather long flight, the ship finally entered the mystical realm and the sky turned into a deep purple.

Enigma got off the ship and used his staff to reveal the path and countless doors along it. “This way.” The mage already started to walk towards the door they were looking for.

Stealth Elf strolled alongside Star Strike, who always floated instead of walking. “How come you never told us about Enigma’s plan?” Stealth Elf was curious about the Magic Skylanders’ alliance. “If we knew what it was about earlier, we could already be holding the book in our hands.”

“Well, it’s not just about the book.” Star Strike felt uncomfortable going into further details about the mission. “The realm in which the book resides isn’t just any random one.”

Stealth Elf became slightly suspicious again. “What realm is it then?”

Star Strike hesitated to answer, but finally overcame herself and told her the truth. “It’s my homeworld.”

Stealth Elf didn’t expect to hear that, but she was positive about it. “Star Strike, that’s great! You always wanted to visit your home again since you came to Skylands, right?”

“I do.” Star Strike’s voice sounded relieved, but it was still hesitant.

Stealth Elf was aware of how much Star Strike missed her home and that her only wish was to see it again. “Why did you keep that a secret? We would’ve helped you if you told us!”

“I don’t think you would have.” Star Strike lowered her head and appeared sad.

“What?” Stealth Elf was completely irritated and didn’t understand what Star Strike was trying to say. “Is everything okay-”

“We’re here!” Spyro interrupted the elf after Enigma stopped in front of the door they had to open.

The Skylanders gazed at the deep blue colors and the millions of stars that were pictured on the door with awe. Enigma proceeded to speak the spell that opens the door and completely focus on it. He was able to create a small gap that let a ray of light shine on Spyro. The Trap Master started to struggle and feared that he would fail again. Spyro took notice of that and wanted to help him by pushing the door with his horns.

“You’re not alone Enigma! We can do this together!” Spyro’s voice was breaking from the amount of strength he had to invest in keeping the door open.

Stealth Elf helped her friend by pushing the door with all her strength as well. Everyone but Star Strike was attempting to enter the realm now. The intergalactic being wasn’t sure if she wanted to open it. She was afraid of something that could happen once she gets back home. Before she could join the others, Enigma crashed to the floor and the door closed again. Star Strike rushed to the Trap Master’s side and helped him to get back up.

“It’s okay, you did your best.” Star Strike spoke with a soothing voice to comfort Enigma, who was gasping for air.

Spyro and Stealth Elf were disappointed about the outcome, but nevertheless they helped Enigma to regain his energy and assure him that he did a good job.  
The Skylanders headed back to the airship that would return them to the Academy. Enigma had to rest before they could try another attempt to open the door. During the flight, Stealth Elf restrained herself from asking Star Strike anymore questions about their conversation but still kept an eye on her.

* * *

 

Back on the Know-It-All-Islands, Tidepool was walking over one of the many floating pieces of land. The Sensei didn’t put an effort into finding a Stone Head, her mind was only set on Wild Storm. Whatever he wanted to say to her yesterday, he seemed to have changed his mind after taking down the enemies that threatened the Academy. The Water Skylander just didn’t understand why he behaved that way.

“The person that troubles your mind, should have not been left behind.” Tidepool stopped and slowly turned her head into the direction where the voice came from. She found a Stone Head which answered the question from Tidepool’s mind.

“What did you say?” The quickshot became curious about the abilities of the creature.

The Stone Head opened its mouth once more. “Your friend might appear neglecting, but what he wants to do is protecting.”

“Protecting?” Tidepool was confused about the totem’s answers. “Does he want to protect us more? Is that why he won’t spend as much time with me?” She knew that the knight was extremely loyal and dedicated to his role as a Skylander, but why wouldn’t he want to take a break when there were no threats?

The Stone Head remained silent and closed its eyes again without answering Tidepool’s questions. “Hey, wake up! Tell me about him, tell me why he behaves like that!” The Sensei tried to wake it up by slapping on top of the solid structure, but it wouldn’t react in any way.

Tidepool grunted and kept on walking along the path, looking for another Stone Head. After she left, the sleeping Stone Head rose up one more time to talk without anyone hearing him. “The answer you cannot get from me, confront your friend and you shall see.”

* * *

 

After only finding unresponsive heads which wouldn’t wake up, High Volt went to the last island he hasn’t been on. There he found one more Stone Head which was awake and ready to speak.

The Supercharger thought of a question which could give him the answers he needed. “Where do the Doom Raiders currently reside?”

The head was silent for a few seconds before speaking up. “The villains fled to an island not known by many, you will have to find it yourself to catch any.”

High Volt wasn’t satisfied with the answer, but he didn’t expect the Stone Head to tell him the exact coordinates. “Where is Sprocket?” The Tech Skylander wanted to know for sure if Sprocket was taken by the Doom Raiders.

“Your engineering friend has been kidnapped, if you don’t find her soon she may remain trapped.” The Stone Head entered its sleeping state like the rest of his kind after those words.

* * *

 

The group of Skylanders reunited on the first of the Know-It-All-Islands. Everyone discovered a Stone Head, but only High Volt was able to get new information.

“Have they told you anything?” High Volt asked the other three Skylanders, with only Spitfire and Tidepool nodding.

“Mine gave me answers on questions I didn’t even ask.” Spitfire complained about the strange system of the islands but kept the answers to himself. “It’s almost like it could read my mind.”

“Mine did that too.” Tidepool crossed her arms and only thought about what the sentences she heard meant.

“What about you Nightfall?” High Volt looked at the Dark Skylander, who did find a head but didn’t receive any answers at all.

“The one I found was asleep. It wouldn’t respond to my questions.” The Supercharger wasn’t too upset about that, as she was sure High Volt made an actual discovery.

The goldling guard was curious what the others heard, but he didn’t want to hold his information off any longer. “Seems like I’m the only one that got an answer to our question then.”

“What did it say?” Spitfire leaned forward eagerly to hear the answer he didn’t get.

“It told me that the Doom Raiders are on an island no one knows of.” The Supercharger explained exactly what he was told. “They took Sprocket and we have to find them, otherwise she will remain their hostage.”

Tidepool finally ignored her thoughts about Wild Storm and instead expressed her worry for Sprocket. “So they really did take her.”

“Then we have to find them as soon as possible!” Spitfire sounded like it was a life or death situation. The fire spirit always wants to get missions done as quickly as possible to prevent further consequences.

“We will.” High Volt reassured the team and tried to stay calm next to the unsettling news. “But we have to tell the others first and start looking for them together.”

Everyone agreed before they headed back to the vehicles. Tidepool couldn’t help but wonder how Nightfall managed to get by a Stone Head without getting a single answer. “Hey, Nightfall.” The Sensei called the dreadwalker who stopped to allow Tidepool to catch up to her. “How come the Stone Head didn’t give you an answer? Mine was able to answer questions I didn’t even speak out loud.”

“Because I have no questions.” That was the short response Nightfall gave the Water Sensei, leaving her even more curious than before.


	14. A Golden Deal

As the day was coming to an end, High Volt reported about his recent mission which granted him insight on the current situation. Now the Skylanders knew that Sprocket was with the Doom Raiders and that they had to look for a distant and hidden island to find them.

High Volt contacted Spyro directly and revealed some of his ideas to the leader. “We have to head out to the farthest corners of Skylands, territory we’ve never entered before.” Even though High Volt was older and far more experienced, he still met Spyro with respect.

“I see…” Spyro wasn’t too fond to explore new and potentially dangerous areas just to find the Doom Raiders, but he was aware of the importance of this case. “We have to unite the Skylanders. Send them beyond any place we’ve seen before!”

The Tech Skylander nodded and followed the dragon’s orders. Throughout the day, multiple groups were formed and some already started their search for the mysterious islands.  
Roller Brawl was already part of a group consisting of Undead Skylanders, but she noticed that Chill has been missing the entire day. The vampire skated around the Academy and nearby islands, asking anyone she passed about the Water Skylander, yet she was nowhere to be found.

“Don’t tell me she’s been kidnapped too.” Roller Brawl thought to herself and became worried.

The Skylander decided to enter the Water Realm, home to many Skylanders of the respective Element. Roller Brawl has never been there before and that was for a good reason, the water made it difficult for her to skate. With wet roller blades and soaking pants, Roller Brawl sighed with every attempt of a step she made through the pools of water. It wasn’t until she reached a waterfall which poured down from the edge of a platform that she noticed something strange. The water became more and more solid the further she looked down. Roller Brawl knew right away what that meant.  
The Undead Skylander found a way which lead to some islands underneath the pools. The further she went down, the colder it became and wherever she turned everything would be covered with ice. In the largest lake of the entire realm, she finally discovered her friend.

“Chill!” Roller Brawl’s joy faded the closer she got to the warrior, she seemed to be upset about something.

Chill was crouching near the waterfall which hinted at her presence. Her head was laying in her arms, and any icy layer of fog surrounded her.

“Hey, what’s wrong Chill?” Roller Brawl carefully glided over the frozen surface.

Chill slowly looked up at the vampire skater. Her expression was hopeless, almost fearsome. “Roller-”

All Roller Brawl could hear after that was the sound of crashing ice. The Skylander was catapulted backwards and thrown to the ground. She pushed her upper body up to see Chill inside of a giant pillar of ice. Roller Brawl got on her feet in an instant and dashed over to her frozen friend.

“Chill! Can you hear me? Chill!” Roller Brawl slammed her fists against the tower of ice and desperately tried to set the trapped Skylander free.

* * *

 

Hidden far away from the Skylanders’ eyes and ears, the enormous island specked with trees kept the Doom Raiders from being found. The moon lit up the dark night sky and most of the villains already laid to rest. Dr. Krankcase was the chosen night guard, even though all he did was experiment with local materials.   
Snap Shot couldn’t sleep, so the crocodile strolled around the camp, always staying in Krankcase’s sight. While slowly walking across the damp ground, he recognized striking red hair behind one of the tree logs. Sprocket has been tied up and mostly ignored ever since they arrived. Snap Shot felt terribly bad for her being pulled into this mess. The Trap Master sat on the tree log next to her and tried to think of a way to start a conversation.

“I’m sorry.” Snap Shot kept his eyes on the crackling flames in front of him, but his words were directed at the Tech Skylander. “I didn’t… I didn’t mean to backstab you like that.”

Sprocket was unable to talk due to her mouth being covered, but she didn’t even try to respond to Snap Shot’s apology in any way.

“I know I shouldn’t have shot Wallop.” Snap Shot felt deep regret after bringing that back up. “I made a mistake.”

Sprocket remained completely still and left Snap Shot wondering if the Doom Raiders did something with her.

“Sprocket?” Snap Shot glanced over to Krankcase to make sure he didn’t see what was going on. To his relief, the scientist was busy building mechanical legs for one of his minions. Snap Shot slowly moved his hand to Sprocket’s head and removed the bandage around her mouth.

“You cold-blooded backstabbing moron!” Sprocket shouted at the top of her lungs the second she was able to speak again. “You can shove your excuse of an apology up your-”

“Shut up!” Krankcase interrupted his work to warn the raging engineer. “If you don’t shut your mouth the queen will!”

“The queen can kiss my ass!” Sprocket was too angry to think about the consequences of her behavior. “And you-”

“Sprocket please!” Snap Shot looked at the Tech Skylander with fear and intimidation, he didn’t want to risk Golden Queen waking up. “Shouting at me won’t fix any of this! Just listen to me.”

Sprocket clenched her teeth and did her best to not burst out with insults again. “What do you have to say?”

“I can get you back to the Academy.” The reptile’s eyes once again shot over to Krankcase, who already sunk back into his craft. “I can gain the queen’s trust and make a deal with her to let you go.” The Water Trap Master kept his voice down.

“And you think that’s actually an option?” Sprocket scoffed at the plan and didn’t get her hopes up. “Letting me go so that I can tell the others where you are?”

“She won’t allow that.” Snap Shot responded quickly. “She will find a way to get you back without you knowing our location.”

“So, you want to make sure the others don’t have a chance to find you vile creatures?” Sprocket’s tone was filled with spite and disgust.

“If I could, I would surrender right away.” Snap Shot was fully honest about every word he said. “I just don’t want you to pay for my mistakes.”

“How noble of you.” Sprocket smiled sarcastically. “If your plan actually works and I get back home, I promise you that I will make sure you spend the rest of your days behind bars.”

“I can’t blame you for that.” Snap Shot understood the Tech Skylander and he would probably act the same way. “I do deserve it, after all.”

Krankcase was about to finish his creation, so Snap Shot put the bandage back over Sprocket’s mouth and continued to walk along.

* * *

 

A sleepless night passed for Snap Shot and the Doom Raiders rose from their shelters. As soon as Golden Queen exited her tent, the reptile approached her. “Golden Queen!” Before he could reach her, Chef Pepper Jack and Dreamcatcher appeared in front of him.

“Where do you think you’re going, Skyloser?” Dreamcatcher giggled eerily while blocking the Skylander’s path.

“What do you want?” The leader of the Doom Raiders kept her back turned towards the others and didn’t seem rejecting of the Trap Master.

“I wanted to talk to you about something.” Snap Shot tried not to sound threatening or say anything that might upset the golden being.

Golden Queen slowly turned around to face her newest ally. “Let him talk.”

Dreamcatcher and Pepper Jack didn’t trust Snap Shot but followed their queen’s orders and moved out of the way.

“I want to offer you a deal.” Snap Shot sounded confident and didn’t back off when the Doom Raider got closer.

“And what kind of deal are you talking about?” Golden Queen was skeptical but also willing to listen.

Snap Shot gulped and gathered all his courage to finally answer. “I want you to let the Skylander go.” This was the first time he referred to the Skylanders as if he wasn’t a part of their team anymore. It felt wrong, but he had to win the villain’s trust.

Everyone started to laugh hysterically after that request. They knew that Golden Queen would never allow a Skylander to escape under her watch. The Earth sorceress raised her hand to silence the cackling villains. “And why would I do that?”

“If you do…” Snap Shot took a deep breath before revealing his side of the deal. “I will tell you everything you want to know.”

Everyone was silent. Golden Queen raised an eyebrow with suspense and thought about his offer for a few seconds. “Anything?”

“I’m- I was the leader of the Trap Masters. I have information you could never find out by yourself.” Snap Shot was careful about the way he worded his argument, but he remained hopeful.

Golden Queen took another long look at the crocodile while everyone else was watching with tension. “Deal.”

Snap Shot was surprised by that answer but smiled after getting the Golden Queen to agree with him. “Thank you, your majesty.”

Snap Shot passed the speechless Doom Raiders who couldn’t believe what just happened. The villains followed the golden ruler, who was heading towards the forest.

“Your highness, what was that?” Wolfgang sounded more confused than angry and demanded an answer from his leader.

The other evil-doers showered the sorceress with questions as well, but all she did was silently walk forward. As soon as they distanced themselves far enough from the camp, Golden Queen twirled around, pointing her staff at her minions to stop their jabbering.

“You imbeciles don’t actually believe I will let the hostage go?” Golden Queen answered everyone’s questions with another question, which confused the others even more.

“Then why did you agree on the deal?” Dreamcatcher tried to make sense of the queen’s behavior.

“I have a plan which will allow us to keep the Skylander and give us the information that the lizard promised us.” Golden Queen smiled and already thought ahead of everyone else.

“Actually, he’s a crocodile.” Wolfgang had to correct the queen but shut his mouth as soon as she gave him a threatening look.

“Dr. Krankcase!” Golden Queen called upon the mad scientist who flinched in fear before looking at the queen. “Y-yes, my queen?”

“I need you to brew me a certain potion for my plan.” The sorceress was visibly proud of herself and kept on grinning. “I will explain everything.”

* * *

 

Hours have passed since Roller Brawl called for help and escorted Chill into the hospital of the Academy. The Water Skylander has been unconscious ever since she was freed from the ice pillar and Roller Brawl stayed with her the entire time.

“RB, we have to go!” Cynder shouted from outside of the room Chill was in.

Roller Brawl sighed while giving the unresponsive warrior a sad look. “Please wake up until I get back.”

The vampire skated out of the room and was ready to go on a mission with Cynder and Hex. As soon as the Undead Skylander left, Chill finally opened her eyes. However, they weren’t the usual dark blue colored eyes, they were as white as snow.

* * *

 

Dr. Krankcase was currently making a certain potion with resources that Golden Queen forced her minions to collect. She also ordered Snap Shot to get some wood for their campfire before the sun sets. That allowed the villains some privacy to perform the queen’s plan.

“It’s done your highness!” Krankcase removed his goggles from his eyes and placed them back on his hat.

“Excellent!” Golden Queen was confident about her plan. “Bring me the Skylander!”

Wolfgang followed her demand and dragged Sprocket over to the group of villains. They all smiled sinisterly while Sprocket returned a furious look.

“Now it’s time to make yourself useful.” The sorceress used her hands and started to create a pile of gold next to Sprocket. She moved her fingers while keeping her red jewel eyes on the prisoner. The engineer didn’t understand what was happening and only watched while hoping she wouldn’t be turned into solid gold. After Golden Queen was finished, she lowered her hands. Sprocket turned her head to the figure next to her and was shocked. The villainess created a golden statue that looked exactly like Sprocket. “The potion, doctor!”

Krankcase grabbed the flask with the glowing purple substance inside of it and walked towards the statue. He carefully tilted the vessel over the replica, letting a single drop fall onto it. The statue of Sprocket started to glow in a radiant light which caused everyone but Golden Queen to shield their eyes. After the light faded, the lifeless statue was alive. It looked down at the speechless Sprocket and smirked.

“Welcome, Sprocket.” Golden Queen was talking to the clone of the Skylander and completely ignored the real one. “Are you ready to pay your friends at the Academy a visit?”

“Yes, my queen.” Sprocket’s clone happily followed her creator’s orders.

Before Snap Shot returned, the Doom Raiders grabbed Sprocket and carried her deep into the forest. The Tech Skylander desperately tried to break free, but she couldn’t stop the queen from convincing Snap Shot that her clone was the real Sprocket and that she will allow her to go back to the Academy.


	15. Undead Club Adventure

Roller Brawl, Cynder and Hex have just arrived at the Darklight Crypt. The self-proclaimed Undead Club used a portal at the Academy to get to the gloomy island. They are supposed to find an airship in the nearby village and use it to travel further in hopes of finding the Doom Raiders. The stop at the crypt spared them a lot of time, and it was a rather distant location as well.

“Let’s see…” Roller Brawl held a map of the huge island and turned it in every possible direction while trying to figure out how to get to the village. “It looks like we’re right here, so we have to go there and then-“

“RB, we know the way.” Cynder sighed. The dragoness and Hex both visited the location before and didn’t need a map to find the town.

“Hey, don’t be like that!” Roller Brawl rambled while still figuring out her map. “It’s my first time being here, I want to find it myself.”

“We shouldn’t waste anymore time, the Doom Raiders are not going to wait for us.” Hex wanted to find the villains as soon as possible and make sure that there aren’t anymore threats in Skylands.

The heroes looked up in surprise when they heard a screaming citizen in the distance. “We have to help!” Cynder didn’t hesitate to flap her wings and soar towards the distressed person.

Roller Brawl and Hex made their way through the fog, looking for the one in need. “There!” Roller Brawl pointed at Batterson, who was being attacked by small floating creatures.

Cynder charged at the foes with her lightning breath and managed to get one of them away from the baker. Hex conjured two orbs from her hands and aimed them at the monsters. Meanwhile Roller Brawl skated at the remaining enemies with high speed and slashed them with her claws, slicing them into multiple pieces.

As soon as the threat vanished, Batterson removed his hands from his face and cherished the Skylanders. “Oh, thank you Skylanders! Thank you so much!” He proceeded to shake Roller Brawl’s hand as a sign of his gratitude and then repeat that with Cynder. The molekin’s smile faded as soon as he saw Hex. The small creature gulped and carefully backed off while looking at the sorceress with fear. “T- thank you too, miss.”

Cynder and Roller Brawl were confused about his behavior towards Hex, but the Skylander herself didn’t seem surprised in the slightest. She looked at one of the monsters that Roller Brawl disaggregated and realized that they were made from wood. “Are those… puppets?”

“They are.” Cynder looked at the lifeless beings as well and wondered where they came from. “They look familiar.”

“These things started to appear here a few days ago.” Batterson sounded scared and didn’t want to get any closer to the wooden figures. “They are terrorizing the whole town.”

Finally, Roller Brawl picked a puppet which was still whole up. The Undead Skylander gasped after recognizing the look of it.

Cynder directed her sight to her ally. “What is it Roller?”

“I know who sent those puppets.” The vampire skater gave the thing in her hand a worried look before staring back at her companions. “Mesmeralda.”

* * *

 

Soon, the Undead Club started to look for the wicked puppeteer Mesmeralda in order to stop her tyranny over the Darklight Crypt. They were met with many closed gates and had to take multiple detours which lead them to hordes of enemies. They finally arrived in front of the town gates, unfortunately they were blocked as well.

“Darn it! How are we supposed to get in?” Roller Brawl attempted to open the heavy steel door with violence, but it wouldn’t move an inch.

Cynder already tried flying over the entrance, but the entire town was protected by a powerful forcefield, which prevented her from entering it. The only way to get in was through the main gates.

After a hopeless search, Roller Brawl discovered something which caught her attention. It was a mystical shrine with dark features and a moon symbol on top of it. The vampire approached the peculiar ornament and saw something which resembled a button on top of it. The Skylander wasn’t sure about it at first, but after realizing that there might not be any other way into the town, she finally pressed the button. The shrine emitted a circular wave which spread across the entire island. The dark night sky became light blue, the fog covering the place disappeared, and the entire atmosphere shifted from dark and spooky to light and inviting.

Cynder and Hex looked around themselves wondering what happened, until they saw Roller Brawl on top of the world shifting shrine. “Roller, what did you-”

Cynder abruptly ended her question after seeing the spunky vampire, only that she wasn’t a vampire anymore. Her hair went from neon pink to a chocolate brown color and instead of glowing purple irises, the Skylander gained natural green eyes. Her fangs were gone, and her skin was a tanned color instead of the usual pale pink.  
Roller Brawl looked at her arms and hair with disbelief and couldn’t recognize herself. “Woah! Did that shrine turn me into a human?” Her assumption was right, and the Skylander had difficulties balancing herself on her roller blades now that she didn’t have her undead nature anymore.

Her shock was refreshed as soon as she laid eyes on Hex. “Hex, you’re-”

“A mortal.” The witch finished her friend’s sentence after she examined herself as well. The sorceress transformed back into her old self before becoming an undead. Her skin was a minty green color, her eyes shimmered in an icy blue tone, and her robes went from dark ashy colors to pale blues. Strangely enough, her headdress disappeared as well, revealing raven black hair which would go a little further than shoulder length. The purple cloud of smoke underneath her dress wasn’t there and the Skylander couldn’t float either.

Cynder however didn’t change in the slightest. She never truly was an undead, only her spectral powers allowed her to become a Skylander of the Undead Element. The dragoness looked over to the gate next to them and noticed that it was open. “Hey guys, the gate opened up!”

The two transformed Skylanders looked over to the entrance as well and decided to enter right after Cynder. The townspeople greeted the heroes happily, as they knew that they arrived to save them. Even Hex received smiles and hopeful eyes, which was unusual for her since normally everyone was afraid to death when they saw her. The trio walked for a short distance until they heard an echoing laughter filling the entire town. The Skylanders readied themselves and watched out for any dangers.

A cloud of pink smoke appeared in the middle of the town, out of which the villainous Mesmeralda emerged. “What do we have here? The Skylanders decided to visit my show!” The show woman summoned her loyal puppets and controlled them to attack the innocent citizens. The Undead Skylanders immediately attacked the wooden creatures to protect the people. After attempting to rid themselves of the puppets, the team noticed that their powers are noticeably weaker than before.

“I can’t fight them off! My attacks aren’t working properly!” Roller Brawl complained while dodging an incoming dash attack.

“It must be the transformation!” Hex created a wall out of rocks from the ground instead of her regular bones to shield herself. “We’re not undead anymore, our powers are weakened!”

“Well then change it back!” Cynder shot a rather weak burst of lightning at the minions of the spider-like villainess, but it wasn’t enough to destroy them.

Mesmeralda enjoyed the show she set up and couldn’t help but laugh. “Oh, poor little Skylanders! Seems like you haven’t properly prepared for my act!” The puppeteer proceeded to create giant hands resembling her own to attack the heroes herself. The team took heavy hits and had to retreat.

“What are we supposed to do?” Roller Brawl grabbed the top of her injured arm with her other hand. “She’s too powerful!”

“We have to activate the Spectral Shifting Platform, so we become undead again.” Hex explained to the others while looking out for danger nearby.

“I’m on it!” Cynder already ascended into the air after spotting the platform which Roller Brawl used earlier. The dragon was about to land and activate it until Mesmeralda noticed her attempt.

“Not so fast!” The diva created another giant hand and used it to crush the platform.

Cynder was able to avoid being hit, but the shrine was destroyed and couldn’t be used anymore. “No.” Cynder looked around herself and saw countless giant hands appear all over the island. Mesmeralda used them to get rid of every shifting platform she could find and thus make it impossible for the Skylanders to get their powers back.

Meanwhile the puppets kept on messing with the townspeople. Roller Brawl and Hex tried their best to fight them off, but their decreased powers made it far more difficult. As she was creating weak bursts of light magic, Hex noticed a frightened little girl in a corner. She started to scream as soon as a puppet dashed towards her. Hex quickly used her magic to shoot the doll and slam it against the wall. She walked over to the terrified girl to make sure that she wasn’t injured.

“Are you okay?” The witch asked with a much lighter voice than in her undead form.

“Yes, thanks to you!” The little girl smiled and was overly grateful for Hex’ help.

Hex didn’t experience gratitude from someone she rescued for a long time and felt happy yet also strange to receive such a reaction.

* * *

 

The Undead Club assembled once again and worked together to fight off Mesmeralda’s incoming attacks. The trio soon started to realize that they stood no chance against the puppeteer and that they had to find a way to switch to the ghost world again. For a short moment, Roller Brawl didn’t focus on the fight and instead saw a familiar symbol representing the sun in the distance. The transformed human soon realized that it was a shrine which hasn’t been destroyed yet.

“Guys, look!” The Skylander pointed at her discovery and the others were filled with hope after seeing it. “We have to get to it!”

“But what if Mesmeralda sees it?” Cynder sounded unsure and didn’t want to waste their last chance. “She will destroy it before we can get to it!”

“Not if you distract her.” Hex looked her teammates dead in the eye while slowly removing herself from the battle. “Make sure she doesn’t look into my direction!”

Cynder and Roller Brawl nodded before getting back to defending themselves against puppets and giant hands. Hex was holding her dress, so it wouldn’t get in the way of her running. The Skylander hasn’t used her legs to walk for years, but that didn’t stop her to head for the shrine. As she was only a few moments away from reaching the platform, Mesmeralda noticed her absence and turned around with fury.

“You’re not going to ruin my show!” Mesmeralda yelled in rage and was about to smash the platform with another giant hand.

Before the puppeteer could reach it, Hex already pressed the button of the platform and shifted everything back to the ghost world. Roller Brawl became a vampire again, the sky turned dark and everything was back to its cryptic design. Hex was able levitate again, leaving purple smoke underneath her. She turned around and immediately shot a rain of skulls at Mesmeralda.

The panicking sorceress used two of her giant hands to dodge the attack, but nevertheless took direct hits. The villain was thrown to the ground and coughed from all the smoke the attack created. “The show is cancelled!” The host exclaimed before disappearing in another smoke cloud.

Hex returned to the village, but instead of cheering, she was greeted with terrified faces moving backwards with caution. Even the little girl she rescued earlier hid behind her mother with greater fear in her eyes than ever before.

Hex didn’t seem to care about the town’s reaction and instead floated towards her companions. “She escaped, I suggest you two go back to the Academy while I look for her.”

“Are you sure?” Roller Brawl was uncertain about leaving Hex alone after seeing the faces of the people they just saved.

“She’s not here anymore.” Hex directed her speech at the citizens of the town. “You don’t have to be afraid anymore.”

The people remained to cower in fear, even though Mesmeralda and her puppets were gone. They only stared at Hex and wondered what a witch with her amount of power could do to them.

“You should go.” Hex turned her back to the town and the Skylanders to begin her search for Mesmeralda.

Cynder and Roller Brawl felt bad for their friend, but they knew that they couldn’t change the way others looked at her.  
The Undead Skylanders used the portal to return to the Academy. Roller Brawl immediately speeded to the hospital of the Academy while Cynder approached a crowd of Skylanders nearby. They all formed a circle around something and the dragoness wondered what it could be. After she rose into the air to see what the fuss was about, Cynder was shocked to see Sprocket surrounded by her allies and seeming like nothing happened.


	16. Helpful Head

Spyro and his fellow Skylanders couldn’t believe their eyes. Sprocket returned to the Academy. She arrived minutes ago with an airship, but without any sign of the Doom Raiders.

“Where have you been Sprocket?” Spyro stood next to his curious allies who formed a circle around the engineer. “Did you escape the Doom Raiders? Did they hurt you?”

No one was aware that the Sprocket they were looking at was only an evil clone created by the Golden Queen. She pretended like she had no idea how she left or even got back. “No… they let me go. They blindfolded me before throwing me on the ship and here I am.”

“So, you have no idea how to find the Doom Raiders?” Cynder recently landed next to the crowd and had a bunch of questions to ask.

The clone of the Skylander shook her head with fake sadness. “All I know is that we were in some dark old castle on a distant island, but I have no idea where it is.” She lied the heroes straight to their faces and none of them suspected a thing.

“A castle?” Stealth Elf tried to recall the several fortresses she saw on their adventures. “There’s so many, I don’t know where to start looking.”

“We have to inform everyone about this.” Spyro sounded strict and was sure that they had a solid hint. “You should go and rest Sprocket, we’ll take care of this.”

The crowd scattered out to tell everyone about the news. New missions to look for castles were assigned, Sprocket’s clone executed the Doom Raider’s plan with success.

* * *

 

The Doom Raiders rest assured that their current hideout would never be found. Snap Shot was glad they didn’t punish Sprocket any further, but he had a strange feeling about her release. Meanwhile the real Sprocket was hidden deep within the woods, trying to break free and call for help.

Snap Shot leaned himself against a tree and glared at the Doom Raiders. He couldn’t bear watching his sworn enemies out here enjoying their freedom after everything they’ve done. Out of everyone, he kept his eyes on Wolfgang the most. He didn’t understand why the wolf even bothered to bond with him if he was going to stab him in the back. Snap Shot’s thoughts were interrupted by a mesmerizing voice behind him.

“You really can’t keep your eyes off him, can you?” Snap Shot turned around to face the Air Doom Raider Dreamcatcher, who had a wide smile all across her face.

“Just leave me alone.” The Trap Master didn’t enjoy the head’s presence and turned back around.

Dreamcatcher didn’t like the reptile’s attitude and decided to float in front of him. “I know you kinda hate all of us, but you sure seem to have a thing for Wolfgang.” The villainess grinned again and enjoyed teasing the Skylander.

“Why do you even care? You can see my dreams, you don’t need my confirmation as well.” The Skylander turned around again and started to walk away from the strange being.

“So, you admit that being with Wolfgang is one of your dreams?” That question made Snap Shot halt and Dreamcatcher felt that she was correct about her statement.

“What do you want?” The blue crocodile slightly turned his head to look at the villain with one eye.

“I want to help you.” Dreamcatcher floated towards the Skylander to explain her intentions.

* * *

 

Roller Brawl arrived at the Academy hospital, anticipating to visit Chill who was still unconscious. However, as soon as the Undead Skylander entered the building there, all she could see was pure dismay. Roller Brawl got over her sudden shock and quickly skated into Chill’s room. Surprisingly, the warrior was gone and there was a giant hole in the wall. It was surrounded by ice and the Skylander immediately knew what happened. She didn’t waste anymore time and dashed through the opening, following the trail of ice going from it.   
After a short search, Roller Brawl slowed down, and her jaw dropped. She spotted a massive snowstorm moving forward in the middle of an island which left behind the trail of ice. The skater knew that Chill was responsible for that, but she was also certain that it wasn’t intentional. The Skylander gathered all her courage and entered the cloud of ice and snow. She shielded herself from the piercing wind with her hands and tried to find Chill in the eye of the storm. After progressing deeper inside, she finally recognized a familiar figure floating in mid-air.

“Chill!” Roller Brawl shouted from the top of her lungs, hoping that her friend would hear her.

Chill kept on floating forward and didn’t turn around after the call.

“Chill!” Roller Brawl yelled once more. “You have to stop this!”

The vampire was frightened to see her friend turning her head around and staring at her with glowing white eyes. She knew that this wasn’t Chill who created the storm. After the creepy guardian fully turned around, the storm became faster and even more brutal. Roller Brawl had to dig her roller blades into the ground to not get swept away by the wind.

“I don’t know what’s happening to you Chill, but I know that this isn’t you!” Roller Brawl desperately cried out and tried to reach the Skylander. “We can fix this together!”

Chill looked at the Undead Skylander blankly before starting to twitch. She closed her eyes and after opening them, they reverted back to normal. The storm vanished, and Chill fell to the ground. Roller Brawl swiftly skated over to the exhausted Skylander and fell to her knees. She carefully put her hands around her friend, attempting to wake her up.

“Please. Please wake up.” Roller Brawl was on the verge of tears and she was terribly worried.

Finally, Chill opened her eyes and inhaled deeply. Roller Brawl smiled with relief and joy “I’m so glad you’re okay!” The Skylander exclaimed happily while keeping her hands around her bewildered companion. “Chill… what just happened?”

The snow guard looked into the skater’s eyes with fear. “She’s alive Roller.” Chill kept her eyes on those of Roller Brawl and wanted to explain what happened. “She wants me back.”

“Who’s alive?” Roller Brawl thought for a second before being struck by realization. “No, it can’t be…”

Chill blinked and inhaled before revealing the name of the person she was referring to. “The Snow Queen.”

* * *

 

Dreamcatcher guided Snap Shot to a quiet place inside of the dense forest. The Skylander placed himself on top of a tree log while the Doom Raider was floating circles around him.

“So, you want to win Wolfy all for yourself, huh?” The mischievous head was curious about the odd relationship and she wanted to know all about it.

“It seems like I can’t keep anything hidden from you, so yes.” Snap Shot felt bad about admitting his true feelings. After Wolfgang’s betrayal and his recent behavior, he shouldn’t have any reason to still like him, but he does.

“I have to say I’m surprised how quickly you two kissed and made up… minus the kissing part.” Dreamcatcher giggled with excitement as she already plotted plans to bring the two rivals together. “I always kinda shipped you two, but I never expected it to be canon.”

Snap Shot only responded by giving the head a confused stare. “Yeah… well what do you have in mind?”

“I’m glad you asked!” Dreamcatcher cleared her non-existent throat and inhaled before starting to talk. “As you know, Wolfgang is more of a lone wolf. Get it, Lone wolf?”

“Go on.” Snap Shot wasn’t in the mood to laugh at any jokes.

“Anyway, he doesn’t really like to cooperate with others. He was always the type that would just run off and do his own thing.” Dreamcatcher specifically thought of the time the musician kidnapped Kaos and used him to travel to the future. “But he kinda doesn’t do that with you.”

Snap Shot was interested and showed it by slightly moving his eyelids upward. “What do you mean?”

“Well when he’s with us, all he wants to do is be the lone ruler of Skylands and share his music.” Dreamcatcher shuddered at the thought of hearing the werewolf’s music. “When he did that weird training thing with you he felt happy and didn’t have the urge to ruin that as usual. Trust me, he dreams a lot about it”

Snap Shot felt flattered to hear about Wolfgang dreaming of their sessions. Those hours were the only ones they shared together as friends. “So he… has feelings for me?”

“It’s hard to tell to be honest.” Dreamcatcher concentrated on Wolfgang’s dreams, trying to remember what she saw. “But whenever I entered his dreams, the focus was always on you. Everything else was so blurry, I’m not even able to tell you what time it was.”

The Trap Master’s mouth opened, and he started to blush. The fact that he was the thing that Wolfgang focused the most on was not only frustrating, because that means he didn’t concentrate on the lessons, but also very sweet. “Should I talk with him about it?”

“No! God no!” Dreamcatcher immediately answered and made sure her message was clear. “If he finds out that I spied on his dreams, he will make sure that the only thing I hear for the next week are his terrible symphonies!”

“His music isn’t that bad.” Snap Shot wasn’t completely honest, but he wanted to defend Wolfgang. “You’re overexaggerating.”

“Whatever.” Dreamcatcher thought for another moment before finally telling Snap Shot what to do. “You should try talking to him when you’re alone. Make sure to not mention any bad stuff from the past and just try to be nice to him, he’ll appreciate it.”

Snap Shot nodded and recapped the advice in his head. “Well… thanks for helping me. Even though I’m still not sure why.”

“Don’t even think I did that for you. I just want to make sure he annoys you with his music rather than us.” Dreamcatcher did also want to see the two together but admitting that would ruin her reputation.

The Air villainess started to fly back to the camp before Snap Shot asked one final question. “Hey Dreamcatcher. If Wolfgang doesn’t want to work in a team, then why did he agree to all of this?”

The head stopped and just stayed in place for a few seconds. “You don’t want to know what happens when you disobey Golden Queen.” The villain didn’t turn around again and left without saying another word.

* * *

 

Snap Shot soon returned to the camp of villains as well. Everyone stopped their discussions upon seeing the Skylander arrive and stared at him with distrust. The Trap Master felt very uncomfortable and made sure to find a place where he wouldn’t bother anyone. He entered the other half of the woods and made his way through some bushes. He finally settled down on top of a rock and took a moment to let his tension go. As he was listening to the sounds of nature, the reptile suddenly heard another silent noise. He soon realized that it wasn’t a bird or the wind and decided to follow it. As he got closer, it started to sound like a person. Snap Shot’s steps became quicker and the sound louder, until he finally reached its source and gasped in shock.

“Sprocket!?” Snap Shot was frozen and glared at the furious Skylander with wide eyes. “Why are you here?”

The engineer wildly threw herself from one side to another until Snap Shot finally untied her.

“They lied to you!” Sprocket had to pause and take a breath before revealing the truth. “They created a clone of me and sent her to the Academy. I don’t know why, but whatever they have planned it’s not good.”

Snap Shot was processing all the information he just received and only managed to make stuttering noises with his jaw wide open. “We need to warn them!”

“We?” Sprocket gave the reptile another dirty look to remind him of his actions.

“I’m on the Skylanders’ side Sprocket, I already told you that.” Snap Shot once again tried to convince the Tech Skylander how sorry he is and that he wants to make up for his betrayal. “But I can’t leave, they would come after me.”

“Well I can’t leave either! They’re probably already on their way to check on me!” Sprocket carefully peeked behind the tree that was next to them to see if she was right.

“You can leave.” Snap Shot’s tone was serious, and he sounded confident in himself.

Sprocket was irritated and looked at the crocodile with disbelief. “Are you even listening to me? They will-”

“Look for you, I know.” Snap Shot finished the engineer’s sentence and kept a stern expression. “That doesn’t matter. You must go back to the others and tell them where we are. I will take care of the Doom Raiders.”

Sprocket wasn’t sure about that plan, but it was her only way to freedom. “You can’t go up against them on your own, they will kill you.”

“You had to pay the price for my mistakes, now it’s my turn.” Snap Shot was certain about his decisions and knew that it could cost him his life. “There’s an airship at the edge of the island. You just have to take some enemies out and you’re ready to go.”

Sprocket looked behind herself once more and then back at Snap Shot. She started to believe him about being loyal to the Skylanders again. The goldling didn’t waste anymore time and headed deeper into the woods. Before Snap Shot returned to the villains, Sprocket turned around once more. “Snap Shot!” The Trap Master turned his head into Sprocket’s direction and waited for her to continue. “Thanks.” Snap Shot smiled and nodded, indicating that he’s going to be alright. That was the last time Sprocket saw Snap Shot before reaching the airship and heading back to the Academy.


	17. Emotional

While the Skylanders continued to look for the Doom Raiders with their newfound information, Sprocket’s clone was looking for one of the heroes in particular. Before the Doom Raiders sent her back to sabotage the Skylanders, they equipped her with a small technological device which Krankcase has been working on for years. She held it tightly between her golden fingers until she finally found the one she was looking for.

“Gearshift, there you are!” The goldling saw the Tech Skylander nearby the main hall of the Academy and approached her.

“Hello Sprocket, I am glad to see that you are back and unharmed.” Gearshift’s voice sounded completely neutral, even though she truly was glad to have her teammate back.

“I have to show you something.” Sprocket presented the device she was holding to the Skylander, who carefully observed it. “This is an Emotional Shifter!”

It didn’t take Gearshift long to analyze the machine. “My observations are telling me that it allows the person it is used on to feel intense emotions and switch between them.”

“… Exactly!” The clone didn’t expect such an accurate answer and was worried that she could find out the truth about her as well. “I thought since you can’t feel any emotions, you could try it out with this machine.”

Gearshift was silent for a few moments. “I suppose it would be a valuable experience to feel like everyone else.”  The robot was created to be the perfect being without any flaws, and emotions would only get in her way of achieving that.

“Great!” Sprocket didn’t hesitate to attach the Emotional Shifter on the spot where Gearshift’s heart would normally be. The clone activated it with the press of a button and it already started to reprogram Gearshift with an emotion. “How do you feel?”

Gearshift shortly closed her eyes before excitedly opening them up again. “I feel… great!” The Trap Master wore a big smile and looked around herself with joy. “The Academy is so amazing! I never even realized that!” The Emotional Shifter was currently glowing in a yellow light. That was also reflected through Gearshift’s eyes, which had a yellow tone as well. The device allowed Gearshift to feel happiness and be excited about everything she sees.

Knight Light was just taking a walk around the Academy until noticing the Tech Skylanders. “Hey, Sprocket! How are-”

Before the Skylander could finish his question, he received a tight hug from Gearshift. “I’m so happy to see you Knight Light!”

After he was released, the knight took a few steps back and stared at the robot with surprise and slight fear. “What in Skylands is going on here?”

“Gearshift is currently using my Emotional Shifter.” Sprocket’s clone pointed at the glowing piece of metal on Gearshift’s chest, which just switched from yellow to blue. “It allows her to feel-”

“Oh, why is everything so depressing?” Gearshift cried out and fell onto her knees with agony. “We always have to go through these terrible events and it never ends!” The device changed Gearshift’s mood from happy to sad and made the robot extremely depressed and pessimistic. “We will never have peace!”

Knight Light was completely weirded out and just looked at the Trap Master with no response before looking back at Sprocket. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

As the Skylanders were trying to calm Gearshift down, Smolderdash also happened to be nearby and approached the trio. Before anyone saw her, the Emotional Shifter changed once again. Instead of blue, it now emitted a purple light. Gearshift quickly turned her head around to see Smolderdash before jumping into the air with a loud scream.

The Fire Skylander stopped and stared at the terrified robot who never reacted in such a way. “Is she okay?” The humanoid asked the other Skylanders with confusion.

“She has this device that makes her feel emotions.” Knight Light explained whilst sighing at the sight of Gearshift cowering in fear. “It seems the emotion right now is fear.”

“Interesting.” Smolderdash found the idea as strange as the Light Trap Master.

The three Skylanders stayed together and observed Gearshift’s extreme reactions to the device. The actual reason why Sprocket’s clone used the Emotional Shifter on Gearshift was to turn her evil. Dr. Krankcase added an option which would make anyone evil and thus become an ally for the Doom Raiders. Sprocket’s job was to try it out on an easily manipulable Skylander and go back to the villains with the results, so they can make more devices for more Skylanders and build an unstoppable army.

* * *

 

Sprocket, Knight Light and Smolderdash followed Gearshift throughout the entire day. The robot kept the Emotional Shifter on and her constant mood swings made it hard for the Skylanders to watch out for her. Sprocket’s clone still pretended to be the real version of herself and carefully observed the Trap Master. She was waiting for the device to switch to the anticipated evil setting and finally gain another ally for the Doom Raiders.

“What a wonderful day!” Gearshift joyfully exclaimed while strolling along the paths of the Academy and gazing at the clear sky. The Emotional Shifter was set on happy most of the time, but other than that the moods were randomized. “Nothing could possibly ruin it!”

After those words, the device switched her emotion again, this time to sadness. “Except if a friend died!” Gearshift remembered her fellow Trap Master Wallop, who was still unconscious in the hospital. “I have to make sure he’s okay!” The Tech Skylander quickly made her way to the room Wallop was in.

“His condition is pretty concerning.” Knight Light admitted and started to worry as well. “We should go and ask about his chances.”

Smolderdash nodded and was sad to hear that a Skylander could leave them for good. Meanwhile Sprocket’s clone rolled her eyes when no one could see and followed her test subject to further observe the reactions.

The Skylanders soon arrived, only to see the big Skylander still lying in bed without any sign of improvement.

“It’s not getting better.” Whirlwind was the head of the hospital team and she always did her best to heal every wound. “It’s a fatal injury. My powers can only do so much, the chances of him surviving are slim.”

Gearshift was speechless after hearing the response and started to cry tears from her metallic eyes. “We’re going to lose him! I knew it!”

She threw herself onto Knight Light and sobbed desperately while the Light Skylander tried to comfort her. “He’s not dead yet, Gear. He could still make it.” The Trap Master didn’t want to admit it, but he was also upset about Wallop’s condition and sincerely hoped that Whirlwind was wrong.

“Is she okay?” The unicorn dragon hybrid asked with a riddled gaze.

“It’s an experiment.” Smolderdash answered while the Trap Masters were busy mourning their ally. “Sprocket attached a device onto Gearshift that can make her feel emotions.”

“I see.” Whirlwind didn’t understand the reason behind that, but she didn’t want to question it either.

As tears were still running down her cold silver face, Gearshift’s Emotional Shifter suddenly changed to a completely new color. The Skylander stopped crying and her eyes lit up in a burning red color.

“It’s all their fault.” The robot pushed Knight Light aside and stomped out of the hospital.

Her friends watched in surprise before realizing that she was experiencing a completely new emotion; anger.

* * *

 

Knight Light and Smolderdash wandered through the Academy, following Gearshift who was in rage because of the Emotional Shifter. Sprocket’s clone was always nearby to observe everything that’s happening, she thought that the device may have finally turned the Trap Master into a villain. However, Gearshift only felt anger rather than malice, and she wanted to let it out on the Doom Raiders themselves.

“Gear where are you going?” Knight Light increased his speed to catch up to the Tech Skylander.

“I’m going to destroy the ones that betrayed us!” Gearshift didn’t turn around and just kept on marching in a random direction.

“The Doom Raiders?” Knight Light questioned his angered ally. “But we haven’t found them yet, you can’t-”

“I will find them myself!” Gearshift kept on walking before abruptly turning around to glare at Knight Light. “Unless you’re one of them too and don’t want me to find them!”

Sprocket’s clone knew that the suspicion wasn’t directed at her, but nevertheless became slightly intimidated by the war machine she created. Knight Light backed off and carefully confirmed his loyalty to the Skylanders. “Gearshift, I’m not one of them. I promise.”

“Snap Shot would have said the same thing!” The Trap Master split her Traptanium Gear into two parts and wielded them like blades, threatening the others. “But he was too busy falling in love with that Wolfgang!”

“Wait, what?” Knight Light and Smolderdash simultaneously asked the same question and were surprised to hear that.

Instead of answering, Gearshift charged at Knight Light with her gear blades in an attempt to strike him down. The Light Skylander quickly used his scimitar to block the attack and engage in a battle with the manipulated robot.

Smolderdash witnessed the fight in horror and turned to Sprocket, who immediately hid her sinister smile as soon as the Skylander laid eyes on her.

“Sprocket you have to deactivate your device!” The fiery warrior looked at the fight and then back to Sprocket. “They’re going to hurt each other!”

“But that’s the point.” The clone decided to finally drop her facade and reveal her true intentions. “Soon you will all serve the Doom Raiders and destroy our enemies!”

“Sprocket…” Smolderdash did a swift whiplash to summon her fire whip and was ready to fight the traitor. “Not you too.”

The Skylander’s clone started to run and swing her wrench to attack Smolderdash, leading to another battle between two Skylanders.

* * *

 

Meanwhile, Knight Light was struggling to handle Gearshift’s different attacks which were able to adapt to any situation.

“I’m sick of being a mindless machine that only follows your orders!” Gearshift revealed her true reasons for being so angry, which she was never able to express before. “My father thought that he could create an obedient little princess that has no free will, but he was wrong. I’m doing whatever I want now!”

“You don’t have to fight us to do that!” Knight Light tried to reach the Emotional Shifter without hurting his friend. “We will find the Doom Raiders and put them to justice! And you can do whatever you want with them!”

Gearshift connected her hoop into one piece again while Knight Light just dodged her last projectiles. “What I want is you gone!” The robot flaunted her entire gear and made it spin right at the Light Skylander.

Knight Light used his Traptanium Blade to separate the gear and then fly straight towards Gearshift. He threw his weapon behind his head and struck the robot’s chest with it. The sword cut right through the Emotional Shifter, not leaving a scratch on Gearshift. The angel tossed the broken machine off the island and hoped that Gearshift wouldn’t be affected by it anymore. The Tech Skylander closed her eyes while restarting her systems. She soon opened them again and was back to her old self.

“What happened?” Gearshift’s eyes went to her weapon which was laying on the floor and then to Knight Light, who was breathing heavily.

“I’ll explain everything, but first we have to get back to Smolderdash!” The knight spread his wings and ascended into the sky, looking for his teammate. He was soon followed by Gearshift, who was using her Traptanium Gear as a wheel around herself.

* * *

 

Smolderdash and Sprocket’s clone were in the middle of an intense battle and neither of them was able to finish it. Sprocket finally saw an opportunity to hit the Skylander’s weapon out of her hand and throw her to the ground. Without anything to defend herself, Smolderdash moved backwards while being followed by the evil replica. The Fire Skylander attempted to shoot fire orbs at her enemy, but she dodged everything with the help of her wrench. Smolderdash thought this was her end.

The clone smiled eerily and raised her wrench behind her shoulder, ready to smash the Skylander with it. “Time to put this fire out.”

Before she could deliver the final blow, the clone suddenly exploded right in front of Smolderdash’s eyes. The Fire Skylander got back on her feet and tried to see through the smoke left behind by the explosion. She squinted her eyes before opening them up with disbelief. The real Sprocket finally returned to the Academy and attached a mine to her clone right before she could strike Smolderdash. Knight Light and Gearshift saw the deed and were as speechless as the hot-blooded humanoid.

“Did you miss me?” Sprocket casually put her wrench on top of her shoulder and smiled while looking at Smolderdash, who was overjoyed that the engineer was finally back.


	18. A new Perspective

The sun has risen to start a new day in Skylands. The Doom Raiders were already wide awake, and Snap Shot was counting the seconds before someone would notice that Sprocket is gone. The peaceful morning was soon disturbed by a furious voice.

“She’s WHAT!?” Everyone in the camp turned their sight to the glorious tent of Golden Queen. Chef Pepper Jack was launched through the entrance in the form of a golden statue before landing on the ground in front of it. The remaining Doom Raiders, especially Snap Shot, were paralyzed by fear and weren’t keen to find out what upset their leader. The golden sorceress soon stepped out of her shelter, glowing in a radiant, almost blinding light and looked down on her subjects. “Which one of you pathetic creatures let the Skylander go?”

The villains were shocked to hear about that and they all looked at each other with suspicion. Snap Shot only kept his eyes on the royal goldling, sweat ran down his forehead and the Skylander tried to hide his fear. Golden Queen’s eyes observed the group until they finally landed on the newest member. The queen approached the reptile, who could barely keep himself from shaking. She towered herself up in front of the Trap Master and tightened the grip around her staff.

“I did!” Wolfgang lied, causing everyone to turn their heads towards him. “I let the Skylander go.”

Golden Queen completely ignored Snap Shot and instead walked over to the werewolf. “And why would you do that?” Her question was simple, but the tone in her voice was as sharp as a knife.

Wolfgang gulped but didn’t back off when the goldling stood in front of him. “Because I don’t want to be a Doom Raider anymore.” The other villains gasped in shock while Golden Queen’s rage only increased. “Once the Skylanders find the island to trap us, I can escape and start my solo career.”

Golden Queen grabbed the musician’s jaw and clenched it with her deadly fingers. “Do you really think I will let you escape when the Skylanders come to get us?” The queen pressed her nails further into the jaw, causing the wolf to howl in pain. “I will make sure that you rot in that miserable prison.” The sorceress finally let go off Wolfgang, leaving bleeding wounds all over his mouth area. Her companions expected her to turn the Undead villain into a golden statue as well, but instead she turned around to face them. “Destroy his shelter! Make sure that he doesn’t have any belongings when you’re done.” After that announcement, the leader shot a golden ray at the werewolf’s bone harp and shattered it into pieces afterwards. The remaining Doom Raiders followed by demolishing Wolfgang’s shelter and all of his supplies. Before Golden Queen entered her tent again, she gave Snap Shot one last angered look.

Snap Shot watched in horror while Wolfgang was consumed by frustration. The Skylander didn’t understand why Wolfgang lied about Sprocket. Did he see Snap Shot releasing her and did this to protect him? The Trap Master had many questions, but it was too dangerous to ask them now.

* * *

 

Tidepool has been on multiple missions since her excursion to the Know-It-All-Islands, but none of them were successful. The quickshot took a day off and used it to regain her energy. As the day passed, she constantly thought of what the Stone Head told her about Wild Storm. Even though she didn’t want to, all she could think of was him. Tidepool knew that things couldn’t go on like that, so she decided to finally speak with him eye-to-eye.

She asked a few Skylanders where the Air Knight was, and they all directed her to the Air Realm. After entering the wide and open area, the Water Skylander soon noticed a strange storm cloud nearby. Many Air Skylanders had the ability to create those, but she was certain that this one came from Wild Storm. As she was getting near, lightning bolts appeared around it and made it difficult for the Sensei to pass them. She somehow managed to get through the dark substance and find her friend, but not how she expected. Wild Storm was in his beast form, normally he never transformed outside of battle, so this awoke curiosity in the Water Skylander.

Tidepool slowly approached the huge creature before he turned his head around and struck her with his glowing white eyes on top of his helmet. “You shouldn’t be here!” Wild Storm’s voice was loud and deep, and it created a strong gust of wind.

“We need to talk Wild Storm! You know that as well as I do!” Tidepool had to shout in order for her voice to be heard next to the raging storm surrounding them.

Wild Storm groaned and transformed back into his regular self. The thundercloud slowly vanished while the knight was collecting his strength on the ground. Tidepool was unsettled to see the warrior so exhausted after his transformation. There might be more to his behavior than she thought.

“Hey, are you alright?” Tidepool was cautious and tried not to sound harsh, even though their relationship was currently tense.

“I told you that you shouldn’t be here.” Wild Storm was breathing heavily and tried to get rid of Tidepool. “Don’t worry about me. Just leave!”

Tidepool’s expression became angry again after receiving another rejection from her love interest, but this time she suppressed that and instead focused on her friend’s well-being. “You don’t seem alright Wild. Please, don’t let our argument prevent me from helping you.”

Wild Storm finally got back on his feet and turned around to look at Tidepool. He could see the concern in her eyes and decided to finally tell her what’s going on. “I know you’re angry because I told you we should spend less time together.”

“Don’t point out the obvious.” Tidepool sounded humorous and tried lightening the mood. “I just want to know why you went on that balloon ride with me if you feel that way.”

“Because of this!” Wild Storm stretched his arms out, revealing that his gloves are damaged from his transformations. “What you just saw was something I tried to hide.”

“Your beast form?” Tidepool tilted her head and wondered why he was so secretive about it. “Why would you hide that, everyone knows about it?”

“You don’t know about its power.” Wild Storm lowered his head and was hesitant to continue. “It’s taking control over me, Tide.”

“What?” Tidepool’s eyes widened, she didn’t expect to hear that. “W- what does that mean?”

“It means that I’m losing control over the beast.” Wild Storm referred to his alternate form as a completely different entity. “I agreed on the balloon ride, so I could spend time with you as long as I’m in control, but I could always feel it trying to claw its way into my head.”

Tidepool felt terrible after hearing that. She was so angry at Wild Storm the she didn’t even realize what he was going through. “Wild Storm I-”

“I want to spend more time with you.” Wild Storm finally admitted, leaving Tidepool silent. “But I don’t want to put you in danger.”

The Water Skylander didn’t know what to say. She felt sorry for Wild Storm, but she also wanted to find a way to fix the situation. After a long moment of thought, the Skylander came to a conclusion. “You’re right.”

Wild Storm looked up and waited for his ally to continue speaking.

“We should spend less time together.” It wasn’t easy for the Sensei to say that, but she wanted to make the right choice. “I see now how hard it is for you to be around others, and I understand. The way I treated you was not fair and you don’t deserve that.” Tidepool had to gulp and wait a moment to continue. “It’s just… I’ve known you for so long and you’re the first Skylander I truly trusted. Your rejection made me feel foolish for feeling that way, so I expressed that through anger.”

Wild Storm was silent and listened carefully. He had an idea as to why Tidepool felt that way. “Is it because of your old team? The ones that betrayed you?”

Tidepool looked up with a guilty look. “I guess so.” She held one of her arms with her hand and looked down. “I didn’t trust the Skylanders when I first became one, but you changed that.” Tidepool smiled and looked at her friend. “The best for both of us is that we spend some time apart, handling our struggles on our own.”

“I agree.” There was a long moment of silence in which the two Skylanders just looked at each other. “Goodbye, Tidepool.”

“Goodbye, Wild Storm.” The Water Skylander took a deep breath, turned around and left the realm without looking back.

* * *

 

The night engulfed the Skylands in its dark veil and only the lonely howls of some wolves and the gentle sounds of the leaves could be heard. Wolfgang was sitting by the fire in the Doom Raiders’ camp, he was forced to sit through the night shift more than anyone else in the future. He had no shelter and his weapon and instrument were destroyed. Snap Shot couldn’t sleep as usual and kept looking over to the lone wolf. He couldn’t figure out why he lied to protect him after everything that’s happened between them. The reptile slowly stood up and approached the wolf who didn’t even bother to look up when Snap Shot sat down next to him.

“It’s pretty… cold tonight.” Snap Shot wanted to start a conversation but didn’t receive a response from Wolfgang. He sighed and decided to get straight to the point. “Why did you lie to the queen?”

“So that we’re quit.” Wolfgang kept staring at the crackling flames with a saddened gaze. “You saved me from your ally, I saved you from mine.”

“I thought you didn’t care about that?” Snap Shot was confused about Wolfgang’s morals and wanted to find out what he was truly like.

“I would be dead if it wasn’t for you.” The werewolf picked a piece of wood from the trunk he was sitting on and tossed it into the fire. “You’re the only one here who cares about that.”

Snap Shot was silent and started to question his feelings for the wolf again. Maybe it wasn’t as one-sided as he thought. “Well, we were friends… until you joined them again.” The crocodile looked at the sleeping villains surrounding them and felt uncomfortable.

“Heh, yeah.” Wolfgang remembered the good times he had with Snap Shot in between their rivalry and arguments. They may have been brief, but the musician never forgot them. “I guess I should apologize for betraying you and the Skylanders to follow the Doom Raiders again.”

Snap Shot still wasn’t quite sure why he couldn’t decline the opportunity to flee from the Academy. He knew that Wolfgang doesn’t want to follow anyone, but the Golden Queen seems to be more sinister than he thought. “I’m sorry too.”

Wolfgang flinched his ear and tilted his head to look at the reptile with a surprised look. “You are?”

“I assumed that you would go back to terrorizing the Skylands when you followed Golden Queen. But you just wanted to be free.” Snap Shot was aware of Wolfgang’s true intentions and why he behaved the way he did. “The Skylanders have rules and under the queen’s command there are rules too, you just wanted to find your own path.”

Wolfgang was shocked about the accuracy of those words and even a bit flustered. He has known Snap Shot for many years, yet he didn’t expect the Trap Master to understand him like that. “I want to show you something.”

Snap Shot looked at the wolf with curious eyes. “What?”

Wolfgang quickly got on his feet and grabbed Snap Shot’s hand. He pulled the crocodile up and started to run into the forest while always holding onto the reptile. Snap Shot was bewildered by the sudden dash through the woods, yet he didn’t want to stop. The forest turned darker with each step, so dark that Snap Shot couldn’t even recognize where they were going. Finally, Wolfgang stopped and stared into the vast darkness. Snap Shot was about to ask him where they were before Wolfgang shushed him to be quiet. The werewolf carefully leaned down and kneeled above the dark straws of grass. Snap Shot recognized a dim light in the green field and wondered what it was. Wolfgang slowly touched it with his pitch-black claw and caused it to ignite in a bright light. Suddenly, hundreds of fireflies started to glow and ascend into the air around them. Snap Shot’s jaw dropped, and the reptile was speechless. The former enemies were surrounded by lights that gently floated through the area and made every tree, every blade of grass and every flower visible with a blue tone.

“Pretty impressive, right?” Wolfgang smiled upon seeing Snap Shot being so fascinated by the light show.

“Yeah, it is.” Snap Shot didn’t think of asking how Wolfgang knew about this and why he brought him here, he was hypnotized by the illuminated bugs around him.

Wolfgang snickered and let himself fall to the ground, with the grass softening his fall. He just laid there and enjoyed the gorgeous view of the moonlight shining upon the hundred lights of the fireflies.  
Snap Shot noticed what Wolfgang did and decided to copy him by doing the same. Both of them smiled while the lights traveled across the ground. Snap Shot then looked over to Wolfgang who kept on smiling. He has never seen the wolf so happy before, and it made him happy as well. He remembered his talk with Dreamcatcher and Gearshift, even though he was at different places and in different states of mind, his feelings for Wolfgang remained unchanged. Even after his betrayal and rude behavior towards him, the crocodile couldn’t help but feel something for him. Finally, Wolfgang turned his head to look at Snap Shot as well. The two stared into each other’s eyes and completely forgot their surroundings. Snap Shot could feel his heart beating faster and he felt like Wolfgang did the same. Maybe it was true, maybe he did love him.

The private moment was interrupted by the sound of an approaching airship. The fireflies swiftly disappeared and only the moonlight was left to brighten the area up. Snap Shot and Wolfgang looked up to the sky and saw a huge aircraft flying above them. It quickly passed, and the sound disappeared in the night.

“What was that?” Wolfgang pushed his upper body up and figured that it was just the ship of one of their minions. However, when he looked over to Snap Shot he thought twice about that. “Uh, Snap-”

“They’re here.” Snap Shot’s pupils shrunk, and the crocodile was sitting like a statue. He almost appeared pale and only stared into the distance in front of him, not moving an inch. “The Skylanders found us.”


	19. The Snow Queen

Before the Skylanders finally discovered the Doom Raiders’ hideout, leaving Snap Shot and Wolfgang in shock upon seeing their ship, two heroes decided to go on their own journey in the meantime.

“Are you sure we should go right now?” Roller Brawl carved the floor underneath her by nervously moving her roller blades back and forth. “Sprocket’s back and the others are going after the villains. They need all the help they can get.”

“I’m sorry RB, but you saw what happened to me. I need answers.” Chill was equipping another armor inside of a dressing room while chatting with the skater. The friends were about to visit the Ice Kingdom, Chill’s former home, to find out what’s causing the Water Skylander’s dangerous outbursts and if the Snow Queen is truly alive. “Almost… there we go!”

Chill pulled the curtains that kept Roller Brawl from seeing her aside and proudly presented her old blizzard armor. “What do you think?”

“It looks great… but are you sure you want to wear that?” Roller Brawl didn’t want to pity her friend too much, but she was still worried about her. “You haven’t worn that ever since you left the Ice Kingdom.”

“It does bring up some memories, but I will have to face them nevertheless!” Chill was determined and not nearly as worried about the mission as her undead companion. “Now let’s go! If we’re quick, we might be able to join the others later.”

“Alright.” Roller Brawl was willing to help and support her friend, but she had an unsettling feeling about the excursion.

* * *

 

_It’s been years since Chill has been in the Ice Kingdom. Years which she spent reclaiming her honor after failing to protect her beloved queen. After all, she was the Snow Queen’s personal bodyguard. The ice warrior spent her entire life in the distant land, becoming the most respected leader of the army. When the cyclops folk declared war on the Ice Kingdom, everyone was on high alert, most of all Chill._

“We need to increase the defenses in the southern parts of the kingdom!” Chill was ruthless and eager to fight the enemy off as unproblematic as possible. “Most of their hordes will arrive from that direction and once they break through the gates we’re defenseless.” The captain of the guard had a strategic and clever way of thinking. Under no circumstances would she fail.

“What should we do about the mountain areas on the east and west sides, captain?” One of the higher soldiers that lead the troops was concerned about the parts Chill didn’t mention.

“Send our archers and a few smaller troops to the mountains, we have an advantage against them on higher grounds.” The ice warrior turned from the table with the map of the kingdom while the other soldiers moved out to prepare for the battle.

Chill exited the meeting room of the castle and marched through the area outside. There was a sharp icy wind blowing, but that didn’t bother the inhabitants of the Ice Kingdom. Everyone was readying themselves for the upcoming war, some with bows and arrows, others with swords and spears, and a few even used ice magic to fight. Obviously, the magic of the sorcerers was unmatched to that of the Snow Queen, but they couldn’t take the risk of having her attend the battle. She had to stay put in the castle and spare her energy for a possible emergency or powerful attack against the kingdom.

“Force captain Chill!” A warrior called her leader in an urgent tone while running towards her. “The queen wants to speak to you.”

Chill nodded and excused the soldier. She immediately made her way into the grand ice castle and entered the throne room, where the Snow Queen was awaiting her.

Chill bowed down to show her loyalty before facing the queen. “You wanted to see me, my queen?”

“Yes, Chill.” It wasn’t usual for the queen to refer to a soldier by their name, but Chill was the only exception. “The cyclops army will arrive soon and we all have to be prepared to fight.”

“Of course, my queen!” Chill reassured her leader that she had no reason to worry. “I assigned the final troops to their positions. Everyone knows their role and we will not fail!”

“Good.” The Snow Queen was silent for a few moments. “We can’t afford losing our precious land to the cyclopes. And my people couldn’t afford losing their queen.” The woman allowed Chill to think about her statement before finally revealing the captain’s role in the fight. “You are going to stay with me and protect me.”

Chill was surprised to hear that. While she was the queen’s personal protector, she didn’t think that it would be necessary to stay with her during the war. “All due respect my queen, but there is no need for personal protection. We won’t allow the enemy to step foot into the kingdom.”

“I’m certain of that. But nevertheless, there’s always the chance of greater forces attacking us.” The Snow Queen was familiar with the powerful magic in Skylands and how devastating it can be in the wrong hands. “There is no one I would thrust this task upon other than you, Chill.”

The guardian was flattered to hear that and didn’t want to deny her queen’s orders. “Very well, my queen. I will do everything in my power to keep you from any harm, even if I have to lay my life down.”

The Snow Queen smiled gently and was happy to hear her most valuable soldier’s loyalty. “Thank you, my guardian.”

* * *

 

In present day, Chill and Roller Brawl soon arrived in the northern area of Skylands, the Skylanders noticed the low temperature.

“Are you okay, Roller?” Chill knew that it was only going to get colder the further they traveled. She didn’t want to drag her friend with her if she had to suffer.

“Don’t worry, I’m fine. Undeads aren’t as sensitive to low temperatures as mortals.” While she could feel the frosty weather, it wasn’t able to harm the vampire.

“Okay, then let’s go.” Chill lead the way with Roller Brawl skating by her side.

The two travelers passed frozen lakes, tall mountains and traversed through snow that threatened to consume them. After a rather long journey, they finally reached the Ice Kingdom. Chill recognized the architecture and surrounding areas. However, as soon as they got close to the warrior’s home, a snowstorm appeared and made it difficult for them to reach the castle.

“Is it always so… windy here?” Roller Brawl used her arms to shield her face from the blizzard and put all her strength into digging her roller blades into the ice so she wouldn’t get blown away.

“No, there’s never been such a blizzard here!” Chill also struggled to stay on her feet. She didn’t know why the storm surrounded the kingdom and what the cause of it was, but she couldn’t back off now.

As they slowly progressed, Chill almost stumbled over a chunk of ice. The Water Skylander looked at the ground and saw a strangely shaped frozen piece. When she picked it up, Chill gasped and dropped it back to the ground immediately.

“Chill, what is it?” Roller Brawl had to shout for her companion to hear her. The Skylander stared at the shocked ice warrior curiously before Chill pointed to the chunk of ice she just dropped. Roller Brawl looked down and realized that the piece was actually a frozen arm separated from its body. Roller Brawl’s pupils shrunk, and she looked at her friend with horror. “What happened here?”

“I don’t know…” Chill was speechless, and her eyes were fixed to the body part covered in ice. There was only one person in the entire kingdom who had the power to freeze an ice guard. “We have to get to the castle immediately!”

Roller Brawl nodded and the two continued their adventure. After they took a few steps, the ice underneath them suddenly began to crack. Chill turned around before the ground they were standing on split into two, separating the Skylanders. “Roller Brawl!” The Water Skylander cried out as the chunk of ice her friend was standing on disappeared inside of the storm. It was hard to stay balanced on the ground as it was now being carried by the water underneath.  
Suddenly Chill’s part of the surface hit something and stopped abruptly. The blizzard began to calm down until it was completely gone. Chill looked around herself, Roller Brawl was nowhere to be seen. As she looked in front of her, the warrior was greeted by another gruesome view. Countless body parts of Ice Kingdom soldiers were scattered across the ground, all of them frozen. Chill couldn’t believe what she saw, and her eyes started to tear up. She took a deep breath and stepped onto the solid ground. Whatever was happening in the kingdom, Chill had to find the Snow Queen and Roller Brawl before it was too late.

* * *

 

Back in the past, the war between the Ice Kingdom and the cyclops army has begun. Everyone fought fearlessly against the one-eyed creatures and kept them from reaching the kingdom. Both sides suffered losses, but the ice warriors were superior to the cyclopes. Chill observed the battle from the safety of the ice castle. She felt terrible watching her allies risk their lives while she had to remain uninvolved in the war.

“I know it’s hard to watch your friends fight without you, but trust me it will all be over soon.” The Snow Queen was aware of Chill’s guilty conscience and tried comfort her.

“I know, my queen. It’s just…” Chill clenched her fist and hesitated to continue her sentence. “I’ve been training my entire life, I’m the most experienced soldier and I can defend our home!” The ice guard felt immediate regret after saying that. She didn’t want to disobey her queen, she knew she had to stay in the castle.

The ruler watched her protector silently before sighing. “I understand.”

“What?” Chill expected anything but that from her queen.

“I shouldn’t have forced you to stay here with me. You are one of my most valuable soldiers after all.” Chill tried to hide her smile after hearing the queen’s praise. “You should fight alongside the others and win the war.”

Chill was surprised and overjoyed to hear that. “Thank you, my queen. I will not disappoint you.” The warrior grabbed her javelin and shield before dashing onto the battlefield and joining her allies.

“I know you won’t.” The Snow Queen remained in her throne room and waited patiently.

Chill quickly caught onto the others and fought without any hint of fear. She took out more cyclopes than anyone else until they were finally able to force them to retreat. Everyone celebrated the victory and praised Chill for her outstanding performance. The joyful mood didn’t last long however, a soldier soon ran towards Chill and some of her allies with a distressed look on his face. “Captain Chill! Something terrible has happened!”

“What is it?” Chill waited for the warrior to catch his breath and started to picture the worst scenarios.

The soldier finally rose from his crouched position and revealed the urgent news. “The queen is gone!”

Everyone was shocked and looked at each other with disbelief. Chill didn’t want to believe it. “How is she gone?” Her voice was shaking, and the guard was holding onto the hope that it was a lie.

“The cyclopes kidnapped her.” The ice warrior remembered something and grabbed inside the bag he carried with him. “I also found this in the throne room.” He presented a frozen piece of the face from another warrior. Everyone gasped and thought this was some twisted joke. “Her entire body was frozen and shattered into pieces across the floor. I don’t know what happened.”

Chill stared at the terrified face blankly and couldn’t bother to mourn the loss of that guard. Her queen was gone, the person she swore to protect with her life. She was gone because Chill wasn’t there. The captain didn’t say another word and left the group, they didn’t see her for the next few days.

Chill was devastated. She didn’t see a reason in her life anymore and was consumed by guilt. The kingdom was out of control and no one knew what to do. Many decided to leave and move to another place in Skylands, hoping they would find a new place in the world. Chill soon decided to do the same. She said her goodbyes and left the Ice Kingdom. She swore to herself that she wouldn’t return until she has regained her honor and was worthy of being an ice guard again. That’s when she joined the Skylanders. As part of an elite group of heroes, she felt useful again and found her purpose. Even though the Skylander found a new home and family, she never stopped looking for her lost queen.

* * *

 

Chill pushed the enormous gates which lead inside the ice castle. She looked around, everything was just as she remembered. It seemed like the entire kingdom was frozen in time.

“Roller Brawl!” Chill cried out in hopes of finding her friend. She slowly walked along the hallway which lead to the Snow Queen’s throne. The seat was empty, it reminded Chill of her failure and her confidence started to fade. There was a flight of stairs leading up to the throne, making it appear even grander than it already is. The warrior walked up to the chair and touched it gently while sighing. Behind the chair was a mirror hanging on the icy wall. On the left and right side were paths leading deeper into the castle. The Skylander wandered through the entire building, but no sign of her friend nor her queen. Disappointed and worried, she headed back to the entrance, when suddenly a voice echoed through the empty castle.

“Chill!” The Skylander turned her head around and couldn’t believe her eyes.

The Snow Queen emerged from the left path behind her throne. Her presence filled the entire room with a cold breeze and the tall woman stepped in front of her royal seat. She had flowing white hair which reached the ground and a pale skin tone. Her clothes had light blue and white colors and it almost looked like she was radiating the light from above.

Chill couldn’t get herself to speak a word, but before anything she kneeled at the sight of her ruler. “My queen, I-”

“Please, arise.” Chill hesitated before following the order and straightening her body upwards again. Unexpectedly, she was greeted with a hug from the Snow Queen. “I missed you.”

The warrior was once again caught off guard and didn’t know how to respond. She was never shown this much affection from the queen, but she was indescribably happy about it and returned the embrace. “I missed you too.”

After releasing her, the Snow Queen looked into Chill’s deep blue eyes and admired the smile of her most loyal soldier. “I have been anticipating your return, my guardian.”

“Forgive me that it took so long, my queen.” Chill lost count of the years of the queen’s absence ever since she left the Ice Kingdom and joined the Skylanders. “I will never forgive myself for what happened during the cyclops war. I should have stayed with you.”

“It’s not your fault, you shouldn’t blame yourself for that.” The Snow Queen was incredibly calm and seemed like she has never left the kingdom in the first place. “I just wish I could’ve taken you with me.”

Chill’s smile slowly disappeared and the Water Skylander didn’t quite understand. “Take me with you? Didn’t the cyclopes kidnap you?”

“They did. However, I was able to turn the situation to my advantage.” The Snow Queen turned around and looked at the empty hall of the castle once more. “They stood no chance against my power.”

Chill smiled again. “You were able to escape them on your own?”

“Not only escape, my guardian.” The Snow Queen turned around to face the ice warrior with a smile on her face. “Their land belongs to us.”

Chill’s eyes opened wide with impression. “You expanded the Ice Kingdom to cyclops territory?”

“Indeed.” The Snow Queen remembered that day like it was yesterday. “They tried to get valuable information out of me about the Ice Kingdom’s power sources and my magic, but they underestimated me. I was soon able to fight them off and freeze their land. They were all suffering under the low temperatures and snowstorms, until they finally begged me for mercy. I offered them safety if they swore their loyalty to me as their new queen. They agreed, and from that day on the cyclopes are under my control.”

Chill was happy that her queen was unharmed, but what she heard left her questioning the ruler’s morals. “So, you wanted to freeze them to death until they swore their loyalty to you?”

“The only way to expand your reign is by promising your subjects safety from outer threats.” The queen walked towards a window which allowed her to view the clear sea and mountains outside. “And we won’t stop at the Cyclops Kingdom.”

“What do you mean?” Chill started to worry and wonder if this is the same person she has sworn to protect.

“All of Skylands will become the new Ice Kingdom!” The Snow Queen smiled calmly and looked at Chill only to see a nervous expression. “Isn’t that great?”

“A- all of Skylands?” Chill gulped and started to become scared. “You mean you want to freeze every other island as well?”

“Of course!” The Snow Queen was sure about her choices and answered with no hesitation. “And whoever doesn’t obey me will have to face the wrath of winter.”

Chill wasn’t fond of that idea at all. She started to doubt her queen and felt terrible for even thinking like that. “But we can’t turn everything into an ice desert. The Skylands aren’t supposed to be like that.”

“Are you doubting me, my guardian?” The Snow Queen’s cheerful attitude became more suspicious and she approached her conflicted protector.

“Of course not, my queen.” Chill just found her queen after years of searching and didn’t want to lose her again. She never saw this side of her and even less thought about ever arguing with her. “But maybe we can talk about your plans.”

“Your friends said the exact same thing.” The Snow Queen’s smile was now completely gone, and she looked at Chill with a cold expression.

“My friends?” Chill figured that she was talking about her former allies from the kingdom, but none of them were here. All she saw were frozen body parts spread throughout the kingdom. And that’s where Chill finally realized what was going on. “No…”

“After I returned, some of them waited patiently. After a short celebration, I revealed my plans and surprisingly received rather… negative feedback.” The queen’s white fingers started to emit cold fog and froze into a blue color. “Just like you, they didn’t want me to freeze the rest of Skylands. They even went as far as to go against me.” The Snow Queen paused. “So I did what I had to do.”

“You froze them.” Chill looked blankly into the distance and couldn’t believe what her queen did. She also remembered the warrior who was found frozen and shattered after the queen’s kidnapping. She was in the same room where Chill would’ve been if she didn’t leave. “And the guard who entered when you were kidnapped?”

“She wanted to save me, but she didn’t realize that I already plotted my escape and went with the cyclopes willingly. I gave her the opportunity to follow me, but she was as insufferable about it as everyone else” The Snow Queen looked at her throne and the spot where that soldier stood before she ended her life. “She couldn’t tell anyone.”

“Would you have done that to me if I stayed?” Chill was deeply hurt and wasn’t sure if the Snow Queen ever truly cared about any of her subjects.

The Snow Queen turned around with shock while Chill kept facing front. “Of course not, my guardian!” She grabbed the Skylander’s shoulder and turned her around to look her into the eyes. “Because I know that you would never deny me.”

Chill pulled her arm away and backed off. “You’re not who I remember.” The Skylander was hurt and didn’t want to believe that the kind and just queen had turned into a manipulative monster. “What you’re doing is wrong!”

The Snow Queen stared at the angered soldier in silence. “I guess I was wrong about you.” She towered herself over the small figure to assert her dominance in the situation. “I thought you were different, but you’re just like your foolish allies.”

“No!” Chill screamed with rage. “I have spent my entire life serving and protecting you! After your disappearance everything I did was to find you!” Chill now appeared more sad than angry. “I loved you.”

“Like you love her?” The Snow Queen stretched her arm out behind herself, lowering a wall of ice and revealing Roller Brawl behind it.

“Roller!” Chill shouted towards her friend and attempted to run, but the ruler of the kingdom stopped her.

“One more step and your little friend will meet the same fate as my subjects.” The Snow Queen engulfed the legs and arms of Roller Brawl in ice, preventing the skater from breaking free.

“C- Chill?” Roller Brawl weakly raised her head, she was freezing and barely had any energy left.

“Stop it!” Chill turned her sight to the queen. “She has nothing to do with this!”

“Oh, but she has.” The Snow Queen had a sinister smile and gazed at the Skylanders with her bright blue eyes. “You’re a Skylander now. You’re an enemy to the Ice Kingdom!”

Slowly, the Snow Queen began to change her appearance. Her features became sharper and she grew even taller. The soft whites and blues turned dark and her hands became deadly weapons. Chill was terrified and backed off until she reached the entrance of the castle, which to her dismay was locked.

“You should have never denied me, Chill!” The queen’s voice was loud and echoed through the entire castle, causing the walls to tremble.

Finally, the Snow Queen dashed forward, leaving a cloud of ice behind herself. She was about to attack Chill as the petrified warrior was against the wall. However, Chill didn’t let it end like that. Moments before the queen could strike, she spoke one last word. “Narwhal!”

Chill could already feel the icy grip of the queen before a narwhal came dashing through the door and flew above Chill to stab the Snow Queen with its powerful horn. Before she could react, the sea creature tore her down through the ice floor and into the cold water beneath the land, disappearing in the depths of the sea.

Chill didn’t move. She stared into the empty hall of the castle and only thought about what just happened. Without the Snow Queen, the castle began to crumble and collapse.

Roller Brawl noticed that and tried to snap Chill out of her motionless state. “Chill!” The Undead Skylander yelled several times, but Chill didn’t react. Roller Brawl bundled all her remaining strength and used it to break free from the ice around her limbs. Chunks of the ice castle were crashing down, and it was only a matter of seconds before the Skylanders would be buried underneath it. Roller Brawl didn’t hesitate and speeded towards Chill to pummel her through the entrance and land in front of the castle, right before it collapsed.

The heroes were on the cold floor, snow was falling from the sky. Roller Brawl got up after the fall and looked over to Chill, who was on her knees and stared at the destroyed castle. Her former home was in ruins and her queen was dead because of her, the warrior couldn’t comprehend the situation. She couldn’t hold her tears back anymore and began to sob while the droplets ran down her cold cheeks. She cried out in agony and let herself fall to the floor. Roller Brawl quickly rushed to her side and held her in her arms, trying to comfort her. Chill only kept on crying and sobbing while thousands of snowflakes fell onto them.  
After all those years, she finished her mission once and for all.

* * *


	20. Awakened

Smolderdash was speechless. She was on the floor and stared at Sprocket, who was only smiling as if she’s never been gone from the Academy. The Fire Skylander just witnessed the evil clone of the engineer go up in smoke. Gearshift and Knight Light, who arrived at the scene moments ago, were just as confused until Sprocket told them Golden Queen’s wicked plan. The Skylanders hurried back to the main hall in the Academy to tell everyone about the new information, but when they opened the door they were greeted by dozens of saddened faces.

“What’s going on?” Smolderdash asked while noticing Tuff Luck crying in a corner with Head Rush who was trying to comfort her.

Spyro looked over to the four Skylanders from the middle of the room. The leader was as depressed as everyone else and he knew that he had to deliver the tragic news, even with a heavy heart. He took a deep breath and finally revealed the reason for the looming sadness. “Wallop has passed away a few minutes ago.”

“No…” Smolderdash put her hand over her mouth and was beside herself.

“He’s… dead?” Sprocket didn’t know that Wallop survived Snap Shot’s attack in the first place, so hearing that he could’ve survived made it even more painful.

Knight Light didn’t say a word and exited the room, followed by Gearshift who could no longer feel sad, but knew right away when someone else was.

Spyro sighed and continued his job with a downcast mood. “All we can do now is hope to find the Doom Raiders and-”

“I know where they are!” Sprocket pushed her grief aside to finally tell everyone the truth.

“We’ve been searching for every castle, but there’s no sign of them.” Spyro was running out of options and began to lose hope. “Maybe-”

“Forget everything you heard, it was false.” Some Skylanders gave the engineer a curious look and wondered what this was about. “The Sprocket you all saw was a clone created by the Golden Queen to sabotage us.”

Everyone was shocked to hear that, and the sadness started to fade away. “Is that true?” Spyro looked at Smolderdash to receive confirmation.

“Yes. She tried to attack me, but the real Sprocket arrived and got rid of her right on time.” Smolderdash smiled and looked at her friend who returned the kind expression. She was glad to finally have the Tech Skylander back.

“And you escaped the Doom Raiders? You know where they are?” Spyro showered the goldling with questions and was eager to hear the answer.

“I stole one of their ships and found the way back. We can gather some Skylanders and head to the island, I know the way.” Sprocket sounded determined and wanted to put an end to the Doom Raider’s attempt to defeat the Skylanders.

“Then let’s not waste another second!” Spyro looked around himself and saw the rest of the Skylanders grabbing their weapons, ready to fight their enemies. “We will get our fastest ships and set course to the distant island. Let’s go Skylanders!”

* * *

 

On the yet to be found island, the Golden Queen and her subjects already prepared themselves for the arrival of the Skylanders.

“Your majesty, what should we do once the Skylanders find us?” Chef Pepper Jack asked with a worried tone in his voice. The queen reversed the effect her powers had on the vegetable during her furious outburst, so that she has the best chance to win. “There’s far more of them than there is of us.”

“Do you think the entire Academy will arrive to face us?” Golden Queen snickered and had no worries regarding the heroes. “Our minions are spread around the entire island. Even if some of them manage to get this far, they will be weakened and an easy match for us.”

Dreamcatcher was hesitant, but she felt the need to point out an important detail. “But the Skylanders have beat us before.”

“Well they won’t this time!” Golden Queen turned around with a bright glow to underline her anger. “And you better make sure that they don’t stand a chance.”

“Y- yes, my queen.” The floating head obeyed right away and continued the preparations for the upcoming battle.

“This time the Skylanders will not win.” The goldling headed back into her golden tent with a smile. “They have no idea what kind of power they’re messing with.”

* * *

 

While many Skylanders readied themselves for the long journey ahead, Stealth Elf noticed Star Strike all alone in a small area at the Academy. The elf figured that she was going to meet with Enigma and try to open the door once more, but she wanted to talk to her ever since their last visit to the mysterious realm.

“Hey Star Strike!” The Life Skylander approached the alien and received a brief look in return. “Are you meeting up with Enigma?”

“No, he’s waiting for me at the path of doors.” Star Strike looked away for a second before continuing. “I’m just… not sure if I want to go.”

Stealth Elf was riddled about the Skylander’s response and wanted to find out what this was all about. “Is everything alright Star? You wanted to tell me something back when we were all together there, what is it?”

Star Strike sighed and finally overcame herself to tell the elf what has been on her mind. “When you helped Enigma to open the door, we were closer than ever before, and I feel like it will actually work this time.” She paused for a moment. “And that’s what I’m worried about. I’m worried that we will manage to open the door to my home.”

Stealth Elf didn’t understand Star Strike’s argument. “But don’t you want to go back home?”

“Of course I do!” Star Strike immediately denied the assassin’s assumption. “And that’s the problem… I want to stay there.”

Stealth Elf had to process that for a moment. “You mean you want to leave Skylands?”

“I don’t want to leave… but I want to go home.” Star Strike felt terrible for telling one of her allies that, but she didn’t want to go without saying anything either. “I was ripped out of my life without even getting to say goodbye. Everyone probably thinks I’m dead!” Star Strike remembered her old home and her friends and family that she left behind. “I love being a Skylander and I love all of you… but I never asked to be here.”

Stealth Elf was surprised to hear all of that from the usually secretive being and had no idea how Star Strike truly felt until now. “I understand.”

The Magic Skylander looked at the elf. “You do?”

“Yes.” Stealth Elf took a deep breath and decided to share some of her hidden feelings as well. “I know what it’s like to be in a world where you’re all alone and where everyone is a stranger. I found my family here, but yours is out there, and you shouldn’t feel bad for wanting to go back.”

Star Strike didn’t say anything and after a short thought she leaned in to hug Stealth Elf. “Thank you.” The Magic Skylander looked her in the eyes and even though they couldn’t see it, both of them smiled.

Stealth Elf heard the engines of the airships starting and quickly excused herself to join the others. Before she could leave, Star Strike called out to her one last time. “Stealth Elf!” The elf turned around and patiently waited for the intergalactic being to talk further. “If you found your family, would you go to live with them?”

Stealth Elf didn’t expect such a question and she hasn’t thought about her parents in a while either. All she knew was that they abandoned her in a forest where she was raised by a ninja master to become who she is today. After some more thinking, the Skylander knew her answer. “I already did.” Stealth Elf turned around and hopped onto the last airship, joining Spyro and some other Skylanders on their journey to find the Doom Raiders.

* * *

 

The airships with dozens of Skylanders on top of them have been travelling for hours. Sprocket navigated them through the endless blue skies and did her best to fly the shortest route straight to the Doom Raiders. Knight Light, Smolderdash and Gearshift all tagged along after their experience with the sinister clone of the engineer and they wanted to make the villains pay for the loss of Wallop. Stealth Elf also joined them after her possibly final talk with Star Strike.  
Spyro and Cynder haven’t talked much after Cynder’s breakdown some days ago, but the dragoness was willing to help when needed. While Sprocket tried to remember the right way with the help of Gearshift, Spyro noticed the Undead Skylander sitting at the edge of the ship and glaring at the clouds. He became worried and thought that her tormenter might have returned.

“Hey Cynder, are you alright?” The Magic Skylander sat down next to his friends and followed the pattern of clouds she was looking at.

“I just don’t get it.” The purple scaled dragon sounded irritated. “Why did they kidnap Sprocket in the first place? They should’ve known that she would escape.”

Spyro thought about that for a second and did find it strange as well. “I guess they just needed someone for that clone.” He also figured that Sprocket was supposed to lure them to the island in case they found it and that the Doom Raiders could’ve used that to hunt each Skylander down.

“But they didn’t do anything.” Cynder was restless and wanted to know what the Golden Queen was really up to. “They just disappeared and now we’re going to stop them. Doesn’t it seem pointless?”

“We don’t know what they’ve prepared for us.” Spyro was usually an optimist, but he knew that they shouldn’t underestimate the villains. “There might not be as many Doom Raiders, but they have all of their minions by their side and they’re powerful, especially the queen.”

Cynder grunted and continued to look at the vast spread of clouds. “I don’t know, something just doesn’t feel right.”

The conversation was interrupted by the sound of cannon fire nearby. The dragons quickly dived into the air and witnessed an assault on one of the Skylanders’ ships.

“We have to help them!” Spyro was loud and clear and didn’t hesitate to attack the enemies’ ship and defend his allies. He was able to defeat some foes and lower the rate they fired the cannonballs at, but as soon as he thought he was done, another ship appeared. The Skylanders’ aircraft couldn’t take any more hits and was forced to land on the first island nearby. Before he could check for the Skylanders, an entire fleet of airships appeared out of nowhere and attacked the Skylanders.

“What are we supposed to do?” A distressed Knight Light joined the battle in the skies and was overwhelmed by the situation.

Spyro and his winged allies had to watch as one ship after the other landed on nearby islands and the Skylanders inside swiftly got out of them. The only airship left was the one steered by Sprocket. The leader glared at the damaged ships to make sure there were no injured allies before landing back on the main ship alongside Cynder and Knight Light.

“We have to get out of here!” The purple dragon exclaimed so that Sprocket could hear him.

“What!?” Cynder was shocked to hear that. “We can’t leave everyone behind!”

“We have to make the enemies follow us, so they stop shooting at the others!” Spyro knew that the plan was insane and could end with all of them crashing into certain death, but it was the only way to protect their friends. “They don’t have a reason to attack ships that are unable to fly when there’s still one left in the sky.”

Everyone was silent, and they weren’t sure about the idea, until Spitfire dashed from an island with a damaged aircraft onto the ship, much to everyone’s surprise.

“Full steam ahead! We have to get the enemies away from the others!” The leader of the Superchargers had the same plan as Spyro, which lead to Sprocket doing exactly that and flying further away from their allies.

As expected, the enemies followed the last flying ship and did everything they could to shoot it down. The vehicle took some hits before they came across an area filled with multiple smaller islands.

“If we want to survive, I suggest we navigate through those islands.” Gearshift quickly calculated their chances in that scenario and decided that it would be for the best if they tried to crash the enemies into the islands.

“There’s no way we will make it through that alive!” Knight Light wasn’t fond of the idea and even less of dying. “I’ll go and take the enemies out personally!”

“Wait!” Smolderdash grabbed the angel’s arm before he could fly off. “I’m coming with you.” She had a confident smile and was ready to burn up the enemies’ ships.

“Gearshift is right, we have to go through those islands.” Sprocket agreed with the robot and steered the ship towards the floating chunks of earth. “It’s a shortcut anyway.”

“This won’t end well.” Stealth Elf doubted their chances of survival and prepared herself for a possible crash.

After Sprocket entered the field of islands, with the enemies closely behind her, Knight Light, Smolderdash and Spitfire decided to take the battleships on by themselves. Blades were clashing, flames ignited, and cannonballs shot, everyone fought courageously to prevent the villains from succeeding. Smolderdash used her whip and solar orbs to blast enemies off their ships and destroy the cannons which kept on firing at them. Knight Light faced the bigger minions which wielded enormous swords and axes. The Trap Master used his advantage in the air and light powers to defeat them and force them to retreat. Meanwhile Spitfire dashed from one ship to another and made sure that no foe would be able to activate a cannon anymore. All the vile creatures could see was a blue blur before getting knocked down.

* * *

 

During that, Sprocket did her best to maneuver around the several islands without hitting anything. She scrapped a few edges here and there, but with the help of Gearshift’s quick navigating she was able to get through it without crashing. Spyro and Cynder were on top of the cockpit and shot the last remaining ship with fireballs and spectral lightning. After they were finally able to destroy it, a giant drow leaped out of the smoke and jumped onto the deck. He carried an enormous longsword that was almost as big as himself and menacingly stared at the only Skylander currently on deck. Stealth Elf faced the enemy eye-to-eye as she pulled out her daggers and got ready to fight the green toned creature.

The drow began the battle by dashing towards the elf who quickly jumped out of the way before pouncing onto his back and slashing him with her blades. He grabbed the assassin with ease and tossed her against a wall of the ship. Before he could strike her, Cynder soared into the enemy’s direction while spitting out a powerful blast of lightning at his face. The enemy stumbled backwards before Spyro shot multiple balls of fire at him as well. The foe was being bombarded by the lightning bolts and fire breath of the dragons while also dealing with Stealth Elf’s quick slashes and kicks. It seemed like the Skylanders had won until the enemy bundled all of his strength to swing his gigantic sword at the heroes. He was able to hit Cynder’s wing which caused her to crash onto the ship and shout in pain.

“Cynder!” Spyro was furious and charged at the enemy with full speed but was unable to hit him as he evaded the attack and the dragon charged through the floor instead. Stealth Elf was the last one standing. The villain grabbed his blade with both hands and smashed the elf, which turned out to be a decoy. The enemy quickly analyzed the situation and used the handle of his weapon to ram the real Stealth Elf who had just appeared behind him. Cynder was helplessly on the cold steel floor and could barely move. Blood poured from her injured wing and the Skylander hissed in pain. She saw the huge enemy slowly approach her and tried to get away, but the drow caught up to her before she could do so. Before he could deliver the finishing blow, Gearshift tossed her Traptanium gear and slashed the enemy’s chest. The foe inhaled heavily before dropping off the ship and falling into the depths of Skylands. Stealth Elf and Spyro soon recovered as well and hurried to Cynder.

“Cynder! What did he do to you?” Spyro sounded angry and scared at the same time and tears started to form in his eyes after seeing the critical condition his friend was in. Half of her wing was almost entirely cut off from her body and the dragon was in great pain.

“You should use the medical supplies from the storage.” Gearshift told the leader and his friends in a cold robotic voice. Stealth Elf went to get the supplies they brought along and treated Cynder’s injury immediately.  
Sprocket has left the dangerous area specked with floating rocks and headed straight to the island the Doom Raiders were on, which was just a few minutes away.

“We’re almost there, guys!” Sprocket exclaimed before Smolderdash, Knight Light and Spitfire got back onto the ship as well and saw the injured Cynder.

“What happened!?” Smolderdash was in a state of shock and felt terrible for the undead dragoness.

“We were attacked by some giant monster, she took a heavy hit.” Stealth Elf explained while wrapping a bandage around the cleansed wing.

“She can’t face the Doom Raiders like that.” Spyro almost lost one of his closest friends and didn’t dare to risk her life. “Cynder is staying on-”

“No!” Cynder yelled while trying to get back on her feet and succeeding after a few painful seconds. “I will fight alongside you!”

“No way! You’re going to get killed!” Spyro looked at the bandage which was now soaked in a dark red color. “You have to stay here and rest!”

“I came along on this mission because I want to put an end to this mess!” Cynder was aware of her dangerous state, but the dragon didn’t want to back down. “I can still use my lightning breath and shadow dash, you have to let me help you Spyro.”

Spyro looked around himself, almost as if he wanted to ask the others for advice, but they all looked as clueless as him. “But you-”

“I’m done letting others fight my battles!” Cynder finally admitted something that’s been bothering her ever since she became a Skylander. “I was never strong enough to stand up to Malefor. I couldn’t even break free from his control on my own! I at least want to help defeating the Doom Raiders once and for all.” Cynder looked at Spyro with hopeful and hurt eyes. She knew how hard this was for him, but she also didn’t want to sit around while the others fought the villains. “Let me show you that I can be a hero.”

Spyro released a deep sigh before finally letting loose. “Fine. But I will stay with you and make sure no one gets too close.”

Cynder smiled and hugged Spyro. Up until this point, she would only hug the dragon when she was lost and needed comfort, but for the first time it was out of gratitude. “Thank you, Spyro.”

“We’re here!” Sprocket shouted, and the others turned around to get a look at the enormous island ahead of them. The tall trees threw long shadows over the entire ship and it was hard to see far into the deep forest. “They’re in the heart of the forest, but we should be careful from the moment we set foot on the island.” Sprocket landed on an empty spot and turned the engines off before the eight Skylanders left the ship and stood next to each other.

“Are you sure we can face them on our own?” Spitfire asked his fellow leader Spyro with an uncertain sound in his voice.

Spyro actually wasn’t sure either, but there was no backing off now. “They sent all their minions out beforehand, it’s only the seven of them.”

“Eight.” Stealth Elf reminded the dragon that Snap Shot was also present, and they would have to face him as well.

“Right.” They looked at the forest for a few more moments before Spyro took a step forward. “Let’s go Skylanders!”

* * *

 

* * *

 

The group of heroes passed countless trees and traveled for a long time. Even though Sprocket recently wandered the woods herself, even she couldn’t find the exact way back. They always held their weapons ready, in case the Doom Raiders found them first, and constantly looked around themselves. Finally, Smolderdash noticed a dim blue light in the distance.

“Hey guys!” She shouted as quietly as possible so that none of the enemies would hear them. “Do you see that?”

As the others looked into the same direction, the light grew bigger and brighter. Suddenly, a swarm of blue fireflies stormed through them before ascending into the night sky.

“The fireflies…” Sprocket gazed after them with a thoughtful tone in her voice.

“Have you seen them before?” Stealth Elf questioned her ally.

“Yes.” Sprocket pushed her goggles down onto her eyes and clenched her wrench tightly. “We’re close.”

“Oh no.” A distressed voice behind the group could be heard. The team turned around to see Dreamcatcher levitating in the dark and staring at the Skylanders. “The Skylanders are here!”

The Air villain floated away and back into the camp, where she alerted the rest of the Doom Raiders, including Snap Shot and Wolfgang who just emerged from the other side of the forest.

“How many?” The Golden Queen grabbed her royal staff and stood in front of the head angrily.

“I don’t know, like, six?” Dreamcatcher only caught a glimpse of them and had no time to count. To their surprise, eight Skylanders soon arrived at the camp in a fighting stance.

“It’s over Golden Queen!” Spyro stood in front of his teammates and boldly confronted the wicked leader. “Give up or we will have to force you.”

The queen laughed. She didn’t take the rather small group of Skylanders serious in the slightest. “The eight of you think you can take on all of us?” The rest of the Doom Raiders also gathered behind the goldling and tried to look as intimidating as possible.

“It’s an even match!” Knight Light exclaimed heroically while swinging his scimitar.

“That doesn’t change the fact that we will win.” The Golden Queen smiled, she was certain that the heroes stood no chance. “Doom Raiders, attack!”

“Let’s end this once and for all!” Spyro shouted and charged into battle alongside his companions.

Loud clashing noises could be heard throughout the entire forest. The Skylanders fought fearlessly, but unlike the Doom Raiders, they already wasted a lot of their energy on the previous fights. In the background, Snap Shot and Wolfgang disappeared inside of the forest again, unseen by any of the combatants.

“Come on Snap, this is our chance to be free!” Wolfgang was eager to join the Doom Raiders and fight the Skylanders off, so that they could continue their life outside of the Academy.

“No!” Snap Shot grabbed the wolf’s hand before he could storm into battle. “We’re going to lose, the Skylanders always win.” As much as it hurt the former leader of the Trap Masters to exclude himself from the Skylanders, he knew that they would treat him as an enemy.

“Then what should we do?” Wolfgang looked at the clueless reptile and soon realized that he still didn’t know what side he was on. The musician couldn’t fight, but he also didn’t want to go back to prison. Finally, he came up with another option. “Let’s run away.”

“What?” Snap Shot looked up and into the werewolf’s eyes. “We can’t just leave them.”

“Of course we can!” Wolfgang was clearly sick of both the Skylanders and Doom Raiders and didn’t want to follow anyone’s orders anymore. “We don’t belong to either of them, we can live without any orders if we go now!”

Snap Shot saw how desperate, yet hopeful Wolfgang was. His former enemy has cut off all ties, but Snap Shot wasn’t ready for that yet. “I’m sorry Wolfgang, but I can’t just leave it all behind.” The crocodile sighed. “Not after everything I’ve done.”

Filled with regret, the blue creature exited the forest and walked onto the campsite which turned into a battlefield. Knight Light and Stealth Elf soon took notice of the Water elemental and headed towards him. Before any of them could say a word, Wolfgang jumped in between the blade-wielding Skylanders and the unarmed reptile.

“If you want him, you’ll have to take us both!” The wolf didn’t have any weapon either. All he could do was present his deadly claws and clenched teeth to scare the Skylanders.

“Fine then.” Knight Light didn’t hesitate to charge at Wolfgang and get into a heated fight with him, leaving Snap Shot behind in surprise.

“How can you even show your face after what you’ve done?” Stealth Elf hissed at the former Trap Master.

Snap Shot only responded by stretching both of his hands up into the air. “I’m not going to fight you.” He accepted his fate and allowed Stealth Elf to tie a rope around his arms to keep him from doing anything to escape.

Wolfgang was so caught up into the fight, that he didn’t realize Snap Shot’s capitulation until it was too late. “No.” While the villain was distracted, Knight Light saw an opportunity to push him to the ground and keep him there with force. He soon got tied up as well and dragged next to Snap Shot, where the rebelling Skylander and Doom Raider had to watch the chaos unfold.

* * *

 

Meanwhile, Smolderdash was confronted by Chompy Mage and Dr. Krankcase at the same time. The humanoid tried her best to dodge their goo shots and chompies, but she could tell that they would soon overpower her. She reminded herself of all the times she helped her allies ever since the Doom Raiders escaped. She was able to overcome the feeling of uselessness and feel like a true hero. She collected all her strength and energy and used it to enter her eclipse mode.  
A fiery blast surrounded the Skylander and knocked the two villains away. When they looked back up, they witnessed Smolderdash glowing with a deep orange aura and wielding two whips instead of one. The Fire Skylander used that to quickly strike the Doom Raiders down and triumph once more.

Cynder was busy shooting lightning bolts at the swift Dreamcatcher, who was able to avoid every single one of her attacks. Because of her injured wing, Cynder was unable to move a lot or fly, but she did her best to fight the sinister creature. In a moment of vulnerability, Dreamcatcher speeded towards Cynder attempting to head bash her before Spyro used his mighty horns to knock her away from his friends. He smiled at Cynder and ensured her that he has her back. The dragons teamed up and soon defeated Dreamcatcher as well.

While Spitfire used his fire claws and tornadoes to help Gearshift with the Gulper and Chef Pepper Jack, Sprocket and Golden Queen faced each other further off the center of the camp.

“So, you managed to escape and call your little friends.” The two goldlings walked in a circular manner while never losing sight of each other. “And I had such big plans for you.”

“Your plans never worked out, and they won’t this time either!” Sprocket attempted to toss a mine at the queen who easily blocked it by shooting out a golden scarab.

“I never understood how someone like you could join those pesky Skylanders.” Golden Queen quenched her red jewel eyes and looked at Sprocket.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sprocket didn’t understand the statement, but she always kept her fierce attitude and didn’t back off from the leader of the Doom Raiders.

“Unfortunately, there is something that we both have in common.” Golden Queen sounded revolted before her next sentence. “We’re both goldlings.”

Sprocket didn’t even think of that until now and understood what the queen meant. “So you can’t be better than me.” She smirked in an attempt to insult the queen’s ego directly.

“No, I am better than you. We’re not the same.” Golden Queen quickly denied and explained the difference between them. “Unlike you, I am aware of my value. I know that I belong to one of the rarest species in Skylands.” She sounded proud, but she knew that that alone wouldn’t impress the fellow goldling. “And besides that, I have been blessed with powers that no other creature possesses, not even you.” The queen shot a golden ray out of her hand and struck Sprocket with it, who was unable to react to the sudden attack. To both of their surprise, Sprocket didn’t turn into a statue and could move freely. Golden Queen’s powers didn’t work on her.

“You’re wrong.” She looked at the bewildered villain who couldn’t believe that the engineer resisted her attack. “I might not have your powers, but you can’t use them on me either!”

Sprocket used the state of shock Golden Queen was in to assault her. They fought against each other and dealt some hits, but without the queen’s special power, Sprocket had a big advantage. Finally, she was able to hit the villain’s hand and knock her staff out of it. Golden Queen stumbled backwards and before she could perform another attack, Sprocket built two turrets next to her that would shoot the queen at any sign of movement.

“It’s over, Golden Queen.” Sprocket still held her wrench with suspense so that she could hit the tall woman, but they both knew that the Tech Skylander won.

“It’s far from over.” Golden Queen used her powers to telepathically place her staff back in her hand. “You might have won this battle, but you have no idea what forces you are messing with.” She smiled sinisterly and looked at the engineer with a gloomy look before heading back to the rest of the standing Doom Raiders.

Sprocket was about to run after her before noticing something shimmering on the ground. She looked down and recognized a mint green jewel from one of Golden Queen’s extended nails. She picked it up and looked at it curiously before safely putting it into one of her pockets and joining the fight once more.

* * *

 

Spyro and the rest of the Skylanders have almost defeated the remaining Doom Raiders. However, Golden Queen was able to prevent their victory by setting the captured villains free. It was once again an even fight and the Skylanders started to become more and more exhausted.

“We have to take them all out at once!” Knight Light just sliced an incoming golden sawblade and started to lose hope. “They’re too powerful!”

“We don’t have any traps here! There’s no way to take them all out at once!” Smolderdash was still in her eclipse form which slowly faded away.

After some more fighting, the Doom Raiders were able to knock all the Skylanders down, leaving them all on the ground.

The enemies chuckled while looking upon the helpless heroes. “Looks like we’ve won after all.” Golden Queen was gleaming after her triumph and was about to finish the Skylanders with one final attack.

Spyro collected all of his remaining strength to stand in front of his allies and shield them from the vicious queen. “I won’t let you win.” The leader couldn’t watch his loyal teammates and friends get killed, so he decided to take the fall for them. “Take me, leave them alone.”

“Spyro, no.” Stealth Elf didn’t agree on his decision. She didn’t want to see him sacrifice himself for them. “We can still win this.”

“No Stealth, you can.” He looked back at his childhood friend with a smile before facing the villains again. “I am the leader of the Skylanders and it is my duty to protect my allies and make sure that we’re victorious.” A sparkling purple light appeared around Spyro and started to circle his body, erasing the smiles on the Doom Raider’s faces. “It is my duty to stop you in order for my allies to survive, even if it’s my demise.” The sparkles started to circle faster and glowed even brighter. “It is my duty to stand up against injustice and make sure that no villain ever succeeds at their wicked plans.” Golden Queen alongside the rest of the Doom Raiders started to move backwards after Spyro floated up into the air while being engulfed by the magical light. “It is my duty, as a Skylander!”

In the next moment, Spyro ignited in a bright light before gliding up into the sky with newfound power and an upgraded look. His horns grew massively, and his body was covered with signs that appeared like ancient runes. Everyone stared at the transformed dragon in awe and no one was sure what happened, but the Skylanders knew that it was their key to victory. Spyro then dived back down on the island and started bombarding the villains with powerful fireballs, which exploded as soon as they met the ground. When he used his dash attack, Spyro’s horns became enormous and he gained even more speed, allowing him to take down several villains at once. The villains tried to flee but the Magic Skylander was able to force them all to gather at the center of the island. For his final attack, the dragon charged his fire breath up and shot it directly at the Doom Raiders. It was a flurry of magic rather than fire, which caught the villains one after the other and teleported them from the island right into the cells of Cloudcracker Prison. Golden Queen was the final one to get hit by the new ability. The goldling stood there without moving an inch and was easily swallowed by the magic which teleported her into a cell as well.

After every villain was behind bars once again, Spyro landed back on the island before another bright light engulfed him and transformed him back into his regular self. Everyone got back on their feet and cherished their leader.

“What in Skylands was that!?” Cynder was overjoyed and jumped up in excitement, regardless of her broken wing.

“I don’t know.” Spyro smiled with his friends but was more confused than happy. “I guess I unleashed some inner power I didn’t know of.”

“Well whatever it was, it got rid of the Doom Raiders.” They looked at the empty camp and the few remainders of the tents that the villains built up. Only the Golden Queen’s solid golden tent got through the fight without a single scratch.

“We should go back and make sure that our allies are not injured and return to the Academy safely.” Gearshift reminded the team of the stranded Skylanders and that they still had to pick them up on their way home.

“You’re right. Let’s not waste anymore time!” Upon those words, Spyro rushed back into the forest followed by the others to find the way back to their ship.

Cynder was the last one to run after the leader, but before she could enter the dark woods, the dragoness heard something behind her. She stopped and turned her head around to observe the camp once more. At first, she thought that a Doom Raider was able to escape, but she soon got a far more eerie feeling.

“Cynder, are you coming?” Sprocket noticed that the dragon stopped and shouted after her, so they wouldn’t leave her behind.

“Yeah, I’ll be right there!” Cynder took one last look at the empty camp before following Sprocket to the ship.

They headed back to the several islands where the rest of the Skylanders had to crash land. Sprocket and Gearshift were able to fix a few ships, but most of the team members had to get on the few remaining ships that were able to fly. They arrived back at the Academy where they were greeted by applause and cherish. The villains were all locked up and they successfully fulfilled their mission.

* * *

 

While everyone at the Academy was celebrating the return of peace and harmony, Star Strike and Enigma were once again in front of the door they’ve been trying to open for the past months.

“Are you sure it will work this time?” Enigma became pessimistic after their countless failed attempts and understood if Star Strike wanted to stop.

“I have a good feeling today.” The cloaked alien thought about her talk with Stealth Elf all day long and whether she should leave the Skylands or not.

Enigma took a deep breath and held his staff with both hands. The Trap Master spoke the usual spell and focused on the door. It started to open up again, letting a ray of light shine through. Enigma soon started to struggle again, but the door was nowhere close to fully opening.  
Star Strike noticed that her friend would have to give up any second, until she finally decided to grab the staff as well and support him. With their combined powers, the door moved much faster and before Enigma fell to the ground, the entrance slammed wide open.

While Enigma was on the ground gasping for air, Star Strike gazed at the radiant entrance without blinking an eye. The light was too bright for her to recognize anything, but it started to fade and the mysterious being was eager to finally see her old home again. Her excitement turned into horror, after the bright light turned darker and darker before a spirit dashed out of it. Star Strike was thrown back and landed on the ground next to Enigma while the dark purple creature bolted through the area. The Magic Skylanders couldn’t make out who or what it was, but they feared that they might have unleashed something bad. The doors to Star Strike’s home slammed shut again and the mysterious spirit speeded out of the realm.

Star Strike got back up and slammed her fists against the closed door. “No! Please open again, please!” She desperately cried out to the door as if it could hear her bidding and tears started to form in her light blue eyes.

“Star Strike we have to leave.” Enigma said very hectically as he tried to pull his companion away from the door.

“No, we have to open it again!” The Skylander refused to give up. “I want to go back home!”

“Star Strike the realm is collapsing!” He pointed at the endless path of doors which was shattering into pieces and fading into the dark blue sky. The cracks got closer to the Skylanders witch each passing moment and they would fall into an endless void if they didn’t hurry out of the realm instantly.  
The Magic Skylanders quickly dashed back to the air balloon Enigma arrived in. They were only a few steps away, but the floor underneath them started to crumble. The several doors fell and disappeared without the path, until there wasn’t a single one left. Enigma stepped onto the few remaining pieces of the magical floor and jumped into the air balloon, while Star Strike was able to use her intergalactic powers to hover in mid-air and get into the vehicle as well before falling down. The dark purple mist which surrounded the area disappeared and they were back in the regular blue skies of Skylands. They took a few seconds to recover from the frightening experience before flying back to the Academy.

* * *

 

After the Skylanders were done celebrating the latest defeat of the Doom Raiders, Spyro and Stealth Elf visited the prison to make sure that every villain was locked up and unable to cause trouble. The foes sat in their cells with frustrated and angered expressions. When they passed Snap Shot’s area, all they could see was the reptile’s spiky back while the former Trap Master stared at the grey wall without showing his face. They finally reached the cell of the Golden Queen, in front of which Knight Light stood with a suspicious look on his face.

“Is everything alright?” Stealth Elf asked while looking at the queen who was standing straight up without moving in the slightest.

“I’m not sure. I’ve observed her for a while now and she hasn’t moved at all.” The Trap Master tilted his head and wondered what the matter with her was. “It’s as if she’s… frozen.”

Spyro’s eyes widened and the dragon knew immediately what was going on. “That’s because she is!” He unleashed a mighty flame from his throat which engulfed the queen until she started to melt. The Skylanders watched in horror until the villainess was nothing more than a puddle of liquid gold. “It’s a statue!”

“This can’t be happening.” Stealth Elf looked around the facility to see some curious villains peeking through the bars. “She’s still out there!”

“Then we have to find her!” Knight Light was ready to act right away and find the lost leader of the Doom Raiders.

Spyro was frustrated. After he almost risked his life and thought that they defeated all of the Doom Raiders, the most powerful and dangerous one escaped and is probably already plotting her next move. “I’ll announce the news right away. You two ask the others if they saw anything when we left the island.”

Stealth Elf and Knight Light nodded before they all left the building and headed back to the Academy to announce the bad news and start another mission; the hunt for the Golden Queen.

* * *

 

Deep down in the dark depths of Skylands, Hex floated over the cold ground of the underworld. After Roller Brawl, Cynder and Hex herself fought Mesmeralda until she disappeared, the witch started to look everywhere for the twisted puppeteer. She has been in the underworld for a while now and her surroundings brought up old memories. They resembled the place she entered when she was on her way to fight the dragon king Malefor hundreds of years ago. Suddenly the Skylander felt a dark presence near her. The witch stopped and carefully looked around herself, but she couldn’t see anything suspicious. When she was about to continue her journey, a giant shadow appeared on the ground in front of her. It grew larger and larger and the Undead Skylander noticed that the shape resembled a head with two giant horns on each side and one larger spike at the top. The sorceress then recognized the shadow and a cold shiver ran down her spine. She turned around and gasped after facing an enemy she thought was long gone.


End file.
